Multi-Arc-Verse
by Madman479R
Summary: YES! another story of Jaune's multiverse experience but with more character and such, watch as the cast and the guest of honour watch these amazing, funny, terrifying and wonderous worlds with the good, blond, noodle.
1. Chapter 1

**The following is a fan based, non-profit story of RWBY and other series involved in the story, all credit goes to the makers of these shows, movies, comics and such.**

With a mighty bellow, Jaune charged at the false maiden, but as soon as his enlarged sword struck Cinder's glass blade a bright light overcame the shock wave and the people within the building and before anyone could react, even the veterans they were taken by the light.

The same bright light appeared all over the planet in separate locations, those being the Xiao-Long house hold, the court yard outside the Haven academy structure, Salem's fortress, Atlas Academy, Beacon Academy, streets of mistral, Schnee household and other areas.

As the light appeared in a different space multiple groups found themselves in a black room causing much confusion.

Jaune and Cinder both backed off as they too looked around.

"What the hell?!" Mercury cried out.

"Where are we?!" Yang cried out as she grabbed a-hold of Ruby, her elder sister instincts flaring but her grip lessened as her lilac eyes met golden feline orbs that stared back in fear and sadness that looked down at Yang's robotic arm that tensed at the sight behind Blake, Blake turned around making Ghira, Kali and Sun turn to see a bull Faunus. "Adam." Blake said, scared, before she was ready to face him but with the sudden kidnapping all that confidence bled away. "Ah beloved, I'll get to you later, however, I see several Schnee's that need to die today." He said as he got into stance only to grasp nothing "WHAT!?" this made others see their own weapons gone.

"What the?"

"How?"

"My baby!"

"What's happening?!" a woman's voice cried out followed by another "Saphron where are we?"

"Saphron? Terra?" Jaune said as he grew worried, his sister and in-law was here? Near a number of killers, and if they were here was his nephew? No! He'd protect them by any cost.

"Jaune!?" the mother turned around as she revealed to be holding a baby Adrian who was obviously confused and scared but brightened up after seeing his uncle Jaune.

"Oz'. You know what's goin' on?" Qrow asked the boy but to his shock the boy replied "I- I can't feel Ozpin anymore, it's like he and I aren't connected anymore" this made Qrow desperately look around until he set his red eyes on the familiar white hair of the headmaster however the wizard wasn't paying attention as he was looking straight at-

"Salem." Ozpin whispered making those of the inner circle and Raven tense at the name. The Grimm queen stood as she stared menacingly at her former lover now foe. "Hello Ozma or Ozpin as you prefer to be called. It seems Cinder failed in eliminating you." She send a glare that made the maiden flinch "however I guess Hazel will have fun with that task instead."

The same brute let out a cry "OZPIN!" "no." the old man whispered in dread, however before a fight could break out two voices that both chess masters were familiar with spoke.

"After years of existence, these mortals have yet to truly cooperate." The God of Darkness said

"Indeed brother, Ozma I had high hopes in your abilities to stop Salem." The God of Light replied in a disappointed tone.

Salem's eyes filled with malice at the sight "You." She said in a deadly whisper "It would seem that you have yet to learn your lesson Salem and now you look nothing more than my creations." The G.O.D mocked.

"W-was this your doing?" Ozpin asked, others that knew him were shocked by his stutter.

"Now before these two over powered children take credit for others actions I'm going to step in before this gets worse."

Everyone looked at the source of voice that appeared to be a young man, his body was completely black with white dots all over his body, and his body reminded everyone of the look in the night sky while pure silver eyes stared at his guests as he floated a foot above the ground, arms behind his back.

"Everyone before you ask, I was the one that took you." As he got multiple voices he raised his powerful voice "SHUT UP!" silence.

"Now I have no intentions of harming you, I just needed to remove your weaponry to avoid a blood bath."

Ironwood was quick to question that, "And why should we trust what you say." He demanded.

"Because if I truly was an evil bastard ("Language!" the arc mother whispered/shouted with a death glare) and wanted death upon you, I would have used your own weapons on you." The being deadpanned.

"Well you may have their weapons, but mine is still a part of me!" the ever so crazy Tyrian declared as he shot off towards the figure, if he killed him his goddess would surely forgive his failure from before, that was until he felt the force of a train hit his back and forced him to the ground, face first. The being had intercepted him and held him down by pressing his foot into the Faunus' spine "Do you want to try that again?" the man questioned in a dark voice as he held the scorpion tail in his hand and pulled. Hard.

"AARRGHHHH! LET GO YOU CRAZY BASTARD!" he yelled in pain as other Faunus winced. "Pot meet kettle." The man simply replied as he let go of him and kicked him back to his master's feet, while the master in question merely looked at the living enigma with an unreadable face.

Salem spoke up. "Alright, you have our attention, but you have yet to answer what it is you truly want from us, I doubt it is to watch us destroy each other else you would have not taken both weapons nor natural abilities." Such as her magic

"Well you're right about the watching part, just not what it is you'll be witnessing." Was the answer.

"You gonna bleed the information to us? What is this, twenty questions? Just give it to us straight." Qrow asked annoyed, he dealt with cryptic shit from Ozpin and he'll be damned if another person does the same thing. Others agreed with him.

"Very well. Tell me what do you know of multiverse theory?"

…

…

…

…

"The hell you talking about!" Yang demanded, she was fed up okay?

"I'll get to that, however, introductions, just to clarify who's who."

"…Well, I am Ruby Rose, leader of team RWBY"

"I am Jaune Arc, Leader of team JNP… JNR" He reprimanded himself

"Oh shit I knew I forgot something. You can come out now" the figure said over his shoulder. And out from the darkness a kind voice greeted.

"Hello again!"

The Beacon students gasped at that voice.

"P-Pyrrha?" Jaune said as he stepped a shaky leg forward towards the 'dead' Spartan.

"Hello Jaune." She smiled lovingly. She was then grabbed and pulled into a fierce hug by her partner. As she embraced the warmth, she pulled back, stared inti his sapphire eyes, he into her emerald orbs as the leaned in for a kiss with fiery passion.

Ruby looked past them however

"Mom?" this made Taiyang, Yang, Qrow and Raven look and saw the White cloaked reaper

"MOM!" cried ruby once more as she latched onto her mother, to see if it was real, even feeling her mother in her arms she was still sceptical until a warm hand held her cheek and she looked up to see the kind silver eyes of Summer.

"It's me Ruby, im here, im here my sweet, sweet girl." No fake could hold the love a mother could in those simple words as she started to tremble and buried her face into the chest of her alive again mom and cried tears of sorrow and joy and was soon joined by the other members of her family while raven looked on in amazement until Vernal shook her out of her daze and she forced a poker face.

"I even got to meet two of your friends, im happy that you're coming out of your shell more." Summer said delighted.

"Wait… 2?" Ruby looked past her mother only to see a familiar ginger wearing green.

"P-Penny?" Ruby whispered

"Hello friend Ruby!" The robot with a human soul responded with her usual cheer then got tackled by a red blur and wondered if that's how Ruby felt every time she tackled Ruby in a hug.

"Mother? Father?" Ren's usual even voice broke as he and Nora saw the couple.

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!" Both Gods bellowed. "You're breaking the laws of existence that even we must abide by!" this fool, what was he doing?

"Well I would if I was a part of your universe or if we were IN your universe, this room is a void apart from any form of existence so your rules do not apply to me." He countered as both beings of light and dark grew confused, a being with power equal (Ha! "Equal") to them.

"But back to introductions!" he said before anyone could question it.

**RWBY**

**JNPR**

**Coco Adel**

**Velvet Scarlatina **

**Sun Wukong**

**Neptune Vasilias **

**Neo**

**Roman Torchwick**

**Ozpin**

**Glynda Goodwitch **

**James Ironwood**

**Winter Schnee**

**Qrow Branwen **

**Raven Branwen**

**Vernal**

**Cinder Fall**

**Emerald Sustrai**

**Mercury Black**

**Salem**

**Arthur Watts**

**Hazel Rainart**

**Tyrian Callows**

**Adam Taurus**

**Ghira Belladonna **

**Kali Belladonna**

**Jacques Schnee**

**Whitely Schnee**

**Willow Schnee**

**Taiyang Xiao Long**

**Zwei**

**Seinna Khan**

**Penny Polendina **

**Oobleck**

**Port**

**Summer Rose**

**Ann Ren**

**Li Ren**

**Terra Cotta-arc**

**Saphron Cotta-Arc**

**Adrian Cotta-Arc**

**Gods of light and dark.**

Later (too lazy)

"Now back to what I said previously, we are in a separated pocket reality to witness the Multiverse that is targeted to one specific person." The figure stated.

"Who and why?" was the general question.

"Him." He pointed at

"Jaune?!" those that knew and liked the blond noodle.

"Him?" those that didn't think much of him

"ME!?" the blond noodle in question.

Others controlled their emotion and awaited the why.

"Reason is because I'm bored and this is apparently trending so yeah." That got some deadpan stares and sweat drops.

"Are you ready?" he questioned as the viewers looked at one another. They all nodded though some not as enthusiastically as others.

"Well then let's begin. I do wonder which reality will be shown first however."

"Excuses me but do you expect us to stand and watch Oum knows how many of these things like commoners. Some seats and refreshments would at least be common courtesy." Snapped shitly- I mean, Whitely as his father nodded his head in agreement while his mother merely looked onto her to daughters as they kept their sights forward and away from their family. Adam twitched at the thought of the whole Schnee family standing mere feet from him and he couldn't even remove their heads like they deserve, like keeping water from a man dying of thirst.

"Oh crap nearly forgot." As he said this the room shifted to resemble a movie theatre. Once everyone got settled, (evil dudes on one side and the good guys on the other). The portal started to show an image.

"Wait! What's your name?" questioned Ruby as she held her plate of cookies.

The being spoke "Constellation, but call me 'Con for short."

**Fusion reborn**

**The world opened to show Jaune wearing dark blue gi with an orange undershirt, sash belt and wrist bands as he fought a green humanoid that wore white and purple karate gi, both with halos above their heads like others watching them.**

"Wow! Fearless leader is a martial artist like Renny?" Nora shouted.

"Miss Valkyrie inside voice please." Glynda said in a strict voice.

"So in this one arc doesn't go for the knight in dull armour look?" Coco said aloud, "Gotta say, the karate suit works well for him."

"Coco." Velvet sighed at the fashionista.

"Vomit boy also knows quite a bit with hand to hand combat." Yang said interested while Pyrrha was happy to see Jaune more experienced in fighting, proof that Jaune can become a great fighter.

"What's that yellow thing above them?" Blake asked.

Con answered carefully, "Oh they're dead." As careful as a super charged Nora in a china store really.

….

….

"WHAT?!" those that cared for Jaune shouted along with the noodle himself. Adrien has tears in his eyes. His uncle was dead? Jaune noticed this and said soothingly "Hey little guy, its fine, im still alive, it's alright." He calmed down his nephew as his sister bumped the toddler on her knee gently.

"How did he die?" Ruby asked, after getting over the scare and the cute scene between the Arc family.

"Probably fell on his own sword." Cinder laughed while others glared at the false maiden.

"Actually he sacrificed himself to save the planet, his friends and family, including this world's Miss Fall." Con said, that wiped the smirk off Cinder's face.

**Their fight was fast paced as punches and kicks were exchanged and blocked, their deadlock was paused however as something seemed to break through the arena floor between them, making the fighters back off as viewers gasped.**

"What the?" Terra said.

"**What's going on?" Pikkon exclaimed.**

"**I don't know. Grand Kai what's happening?" Jaune turned to an elder man that sat on a thrown like chair.**

"**Somethings causing some really weird stuff to go down." The Kai theorised in a funky voice that contrasted his age.**

"Ug he sounds like dad trying to be hip." Ruby and Yang groaned.

"Hey! I can be cool and hip like teenagers. Im not that old." Tai pouted as he was comforted by Summer.

"**I gathered that much." Jaune chuckled despite the strange occurrence.**

"**I think it's comin' from Yemma's domain." The Kai settled back in his seat as he adjusted his sun glasses.**

"King Yemma?" Ironwood frowned.

"He is the keeper of what you call purgatory, the judge of souls, whether they go to heaven or otherworld as they call it or hell." Con explained.

**The green warrior stood in attention "Let me go sir."**

**Jaune however had a problem with that suggestion as he leaned towards Pikkon "Wait a sec, we haven't finished the finals yet. I don't want to take a forfeit, that's no way to win the championship."**

"Seriously Arc, you just see an anomaly that could be disastrous and you want to keep fighting." Weiss questioned.

"Hey it's not me!" Jaune said defensively.

"Well it kinda is you." Neptune replied.

"Well it is me but not _me_, I don't control other me's actions or thoughts." Jaune countered

**Jaune was interrupted by Grand Kia "I'll finish this right now, Jaune you go with Pikkon to king Yemma's, we'll finish this fight when you two get back," he suggested/ordered.**

"**Yes sir." "Well if you gotta go, you gotta go, and if you do, you might as well go in style, grab my shoulder." Jaune offered as he turned his back to Pikkon, Pikkon taking the offered shoulder as Jaune concentrated and placed his index and ring fingers to his forehead.**

"What the hell is he on, why does he need to grab blondie?" Mercury questioned.

'**All right, king Yemma's… AH! I can barely sense his spirit! He's in some kind of trouble' Jaune thought as he and Pikkon disappeared and reappeared in a world that had floating orbs of different colours and shapes. **

"Did he just teleport!?" Nora and Ruby shouted excited as the Faunus held their ears in pain from the loud noise.

"That's a useful trick." Qrow commented as Raven was comparing it to her semblance.

"He also said he could barely sense this Yemma guy. What does that mean, he can sense others life force?" Emerald asked.

"Damn, kids must hate playing hide n' seek with him." Roman spoke up with Neo nodding.

"So he can only teleport to those he can sense, quite the limitation." Watts said.

"And to think, I would use that to teleport to the kitchen but I have to sense someone in there? Lame." Mercury said with his priorities set.

**Both he and Pikkon looked around in wonder "Get a load of this, doesn't look like the check in station I know." Jaune gazed at the largest orb that contained some building "it feels like King Yemma's inside that thing."**

**A red giant showed up in a distorted form as he shouted "Jaune thank goodness, an accident mutated one of our workers he did this."**

"**Don't worry King Yemma, we'll bust you out of this before you can say "snake way"." Jaune waved the giant down "Pikkon, let's take a shot on three." Both fighter leapt into the air, energy gathered in their palms.**

"Cool they can fire energy beams with their aura." Ruby said.

"It must be Jaune's semblance, but quite the coincidence that this Pikkon fellow can do the same." Weiss commented.

"Actually it has nothing to do with aura, it's another form of life energy called Ki. This power is different as once mastered it can be used to enhance the body and strength of its user and with enough training, can form Ki blasts, along with flight, sensing others, reading minds, teleporting or Instant Transmission as they call it, moving as super speeds, so fast that the un trained eye cannot follow, creating barriers and more." Con explained

Others were shocked by how many possibilities this "Ki" energy possessed. Salem and Ozpin were already trying to figure out a way to utilise this power, along with Ironwood and Cinder, one to give them an edge and the other to have more power at her disposal.

"**1\. 2. 3!" Green and yellow blasts raced to the yellow orb but had no affect "Nothing, it must have absorbed it." Pikkon said annoyed, Jaune prepared to fire again until King Yemma shouted that a monster was on the roof. **

**Jaune and Pikkon flew to the top "I don't see a monster on the roof." Until a large, fat, yellow creature greeted them "AH! NEVERMIND!" Jaune yelled spooked.**

"What the hell? That's the big bad guy, he looks like someone escaped from the show "weight watchers." Mercury said, not impressed.

**The Creature laughed like a child at them.**

"Despite how he looks or his size, he acts like a child." Said Kali

"Sounds like one as well." Ghira followed up.

"**Gosh he doesn't seem that mean to me." Jaune said, doubt in his voice.**

"**Well we'll soon find out." Pikkon flew to the face of this child monster. "Are you the one that put the barrier around this world?" Pikkon demanded to know only to get "Janemba, Janemba."**

"Janemba? That's a strange word for him to say." Pyrrha voiced her thought.

"It may be a name, and that is all he knows what to say." Jaune spoke.

"What like that rock guy from 'protectors of the universe' moot? The one that says "I am Moot"." Yang asked.

"**Okay… be a good boy and put down the barrier now Janemba" Pikkon said, like a parent to a misbehaving child.**

**Blank looks**

**Blank looks all around.**

"**ARE YOU STUPID OR WHAT?! YOU HEARD ME! TAKE THAT BARRIER DOWN RIGHT THIS INSTANT OR ELSE!" Pikkon was done with this shit at this point.**

"**Janemba." That probably didn't help.**

"**ARE YOU TRYING TO MAKE A FOOL OUT OF M-!" Pikkon was interrupted as Janemba flicked him away as if he were a mere fly, the force sent his hurtling into a floating orb making it crack on impact.**

"DAMN! He got knocked the fudge out." Sun shouted as strange looks were sent his way. "What? Baby near, can't be swearing in front of kids."

"**He didn't even try." Jaune analysed this "Janemba" "You really pack a wallop, who are you anyway." This made Jaune exited to fight someone strong "Careful Jaune, he's stronger than he looks." Pikkon warned as he rubbed his sore face.**

"**JANEMBA WHOOOOO!" the creature sent off a blast of air that pushed Jaune and Pikkon back an inch.**

"**He's stronger than I thought. We were right to call the fight off, this guy could destroy the whole universe! I never felt a power like this! Hey if you don't mind, I think I should handle this by myself." Jaune slyly suggested.**

"**I know you, you're being selfish you just want to have all the fun." Pikkon wasn't having that as he flew back to the yellow giant.**

"I really like to fight in this world don't I?" says Jaune.

**Janemba was pointing at Jaune, saying his own name twice, it seemed to be the only words to be able to say, Jaune pointed to himself as if to confirm that it was indeed him Janemba wanted. "You like me don't you? Im the one you want to fight aren't I?" Jaune yelled exited as he raced up the orb towards Janemba, laughing all the way**

"**DID YOU FORGET ME!?" King Yemma accused.**

"**Oh no Pikkon was gonna help ya. Weren't you Pikkon?" Jaune said as he stuck his tongue out at the now ticked off Pikkon before he grew serious.**

"Ha, sneaky kid." Qrow praised as he took a swig of his flask while Winter glared at the drunk, honestly, couldn't he stop for a second?

"**Look im going to try to lure the big guy down to hell and as soon as you find out how to get rid of this barrier come on down." Jaune said as he then let out excited noises as he clapped his hands in front of Janemba's face "C'mon!" Janemba didn't expect that as he tried to balance himself while Jaune dropped further and further down "You can do it Janemba! Follow the leader big fella! WOHOO!" Jaune encouraged as he descended.**

"Jaune was always good with kids, so it's no surprise he knows how to talk one into doing as he says.

**Janemba followed with a… weird laugh that sounded off. **

"Okay that laugh and background music doesn't sound comforting." Oscar shivered

**Janemba used to orbs to slow his fast descent. Jaune touched down as he observed his new surroundings "Whoa, this guy's affecting every dimension in creation." **

"Just what are the limits to this creature?" The god of Darkness questioned.

**The ground below him rumbled as the fat Janemba crashed onto the surface.**

**Jaune let out a weak laugh, "Heh, he seems so harmless." Janemba righted himself out as he let out his name some more before he placed his hand over some frozen statues, his palm glowed pink as mini Janembas appeared, this shocked Jaune as more and more mini Janembas waddled towards the blue gi fighter "Heh heh, they're actually kinda cute." Jaune then had to dodge as a mini Janemba tried to smack him before another attacked, Jaune punched and kicked those that got close before they dog piled him.**

"Jaune!" Pyrrha yelled in concern. "Hey it's alright Pyrrha, im right next to you." Jaune squeezed her hand to calm her down.

**Janemba clapped in joy before Jaune kicked all the Janembas away with a spin kick, the Janembas fell back to the ground and broke into little shards, Jaune also dropped to the ground with a karate stance, ready for more. Janemba then moved his hand and motioned for multiple orbs to come crashing down around Jaune, trying to crush him, he then closed his hand as the orbs around Jaune came together on trapped Jaune.**

"So he has telekinesis or is he only able to control the orbs?" Oobleck wondered.

"Even if it's just those orbs, Mr Arc is still in danger as there are so many." Port replied.

**Janemba then started to sprint towards the trapped Jaune, while the blond tried to escape the orbs, as he neared an exit he was shocked to see the monster rushing at him, despite his obese form.**

"Whoa, that fat fuck can run." Mercury said.

Before the Cotta-Arc mothers could scold his use of words Con stepped in. "Don't worry, given I know some of these people and their choice of vocabulary I made sure Adrien can't hear any extreme words, don't want him swearing like a sailor."

"Thank you."

**As Janemba collided with the make shift trap Jaune was sent flying before he controlled his body and charged at the yellow creature, Janemba turned his head as he saw Jaunes approach and met him with a kick after he dropped backwards and stood upside down, his hand holding his entire body, quite the athletic feat for his chubby body. **

"Seriously how can he move like this?" Vernal asked.

"It may have to be his connection to this Ki energy." Watts theorised.

**Jaune once again was sent flying before he attempted another head on charge only to get smacked away, Janemba followed his assault with a punch to his left.**

"First he isn't even aiming at the human, second he's out of arms…"

**His arm seemed to disappear into a portal however as Jaune was out of arm's length, as Jaune stopped himself he saw a ripple to his left and out came a giant yellow fist that landed a direct hit.**

"…reach." Adam finished weakly.

"Another trick from Janemba it would appear." Hazel offered an explanation.

The scientists weren't having it though. "HOW?! I've had it up to here with this freak of nature." Watts exclaimed annoyed that he couldn't explain this scientifically without just saying it was Ki.

**Janemba kept his combo up, opening portals to where Jaune would be and would punch him again and again, he then kicked up high as his foot entered a new portal, Jaune floated in a daze until he felt an impact on his gut and was sent up into the sky, Janemba wanted to crush Jaune as he punched to ground, a portal opening before his fist hit the ground and a new portal opened above Jaune, however before it connected Jaune stopped it from crushing him as he held his hands up and pushed back, he struggled before Janemba attacked again, Jaune was ready this time, as he sensed a fist behind him, he twisted around and met the fist with a yellow energy blast that sent Janemba back.**

Jaunes friends and family winced at every blow, then cheered as he seemed to gain the upper hand.

**Jaune didn't let this chance go to waste as he put his right leg forward and left leg back, his hands cupped to his left side as he gathered energy into his palms.**

"What's your next move Mr Arc?" Ozpin whispered.

"OOOOHHH? What's Jaune Jaune doing?!" Nora shouted.

"It's a super attack!" Ruby exclaimed also excited.

"**KA ME HA ME." He chanted as the blue glow increased, with enough Ki in hand he sent his hands forward "HHHHHAAAAAAAA!" Jaune shouted, a huge blue beam shot to Janemba who lifted his hand, a Jaune replica came to life who sent his own beam to Jaune and the illusions blast caused a giant explosion.**

**Jaune stood there, smoke leaving his body as he stood dazed and bruised, his blue gi was slightly torn "Was that… me that shot me?" Janemba let out some more laughter.**

**Jaune smiled then grew serious 'I better finish this off right now before this gets out of hand.' He thought as he suddenly started screaming and a gold aura like fire erupted from his body.**

This action confused the audience, "Why is the fool just screaming now?" Raven questioned.

"You lot ask tons of questions." Con got some glares "Fine, Fine he's powering up to transform."

"Transform?" asked Willow

"*Inhales* *exhales* Jaune is what is known as a Saiyan. An alien from a warrior race, he along with Cinder and a handful are the only Saiyans remaining after Salem destroyed their home world Planet Cinder."

"Oh?" Cinder said intrigued.

"Cinder is from the royal bloodline of a Saiyan family, her mother ruled the world, her name was also Cinder…"

"Jeez with ego like that." Cinder glared at the drunk for his remark

"But imagine if something was happening like "Sire cinder is in danger" "Wait my daughter, the planet or me?" "…Yes."." Only Tai laughed at the weak joke from his daughter.

"…with that out the way, Saiyans have the ability to grow even stronger by going "Super Saiyan" this transformation increases their base form power level and they have 3 forms of the super Saiyan form. To unlock it one must be of pure heart with a need, not a desire, rage also helps a lot, the transformation includes a change of hair, as it turns golden and sticks up, defying gravity and the eyes go aqua in colour, Jaune unlocked this form after the death of a close friend when he fought Salem and won with that form."

This lore interested many but Salem's followers were surprised that their queen lost to the arc while Salem herself scowled darkly.

"…Sooo. Why you're saying."

"Yang no."

"Is that getting angry and with my hair going up and eyes changing…"

"Yang please I will pay you to be silent."

"I go…"

"Please Oum no."

"… Super sai-YANG? Eh, EH?!" Yang punned, this made Ruby pull her hood down and cry into it, the darkness giving a sense of comfort, Weiss was willing to file her nails to resemble claws in order to slit either yang's or her own throat while Blake was going over the pros and cons of being on team RWBY.

"Back to it then."

**As Jaune transformed into his super Saiyan 2 state Janemba suddenly let out his own cry as his body rumbled, Jaune stopped powering out with a weirded out expression at the weird Janemba but suddenly the holes on Janembas torso started to glow as Ki pellets started leaving the holes, they fired off like a turret as Jaune flew around to dodge the barrage of blasts, Janemba pointed his torso to aim at Jaune however he lost balance and suddenly fell onto his still shooting stomach causing a massive explosion that was seen from Pikkons position in the air.**

**During the fight Pikkon had found a weakness in the barrier which was insults, he started shouting off insult after insult as it dug into the barriers wall but the constant yelling was obviously tiring as the fighter was breathing heavily. He looked back with scorn and resentment.**

"**Haaaa. He's jammin' and I'm baby-sitting a wall." He muttered as the sky suddenly took on a gold glow and the sound of Jaunes anger filled cry reached the heavens.**

"**NNNNNNGGGGGGGGGGAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"**

**The camera panelled down to show Jaune powering up some more but with far more intensity than before as lightning danced around him and his aura caused mini shock waves. Janemba sat up and watched in astonishment along with their unknown audience as dust clouds now rose due to the power, the sky turned into a mixture of blue, green and purple hues as the screaming further increased in ferocity. "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH!" The orbs were pushed away from the shock waves.**

**Elsewhere the Grand Kai still sat on his throne was struggling to keep up and steady as he experienced an earth quake all the way from the fight. Jaunes scream could even be heard in the back ground faintly. **

"**WOW I FEEL LIKE A DINGY IN THE OCEAN AND JAUNE'S A HURRICANE WHA!" he finally tipped over as a sign fell as well. The camera was back to Jaune as he continued to power up.**

"**AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"**

**The electricity danced quicker, the earth beneath him broke and rose in the air, his aura grew and his hair extended down his back with sharp tips. "HA!"**

**With that final bellow his transformation ended and now as the dust settled the viewers saw the new state of Jaune.**

**He stood tall and confident, his arms down but tensed as he held his hands into fists ready to fight, his hair now so big and long that it travelled down his back as one long tip hung over his face, eyes filled with seriousness and intensity that sent chills down spines, lightning zapped in and out of existence from his body as his aura moved like a fire around him.**

"…."

"…."

"…."

Many in the audience were speechless, this form obviously held much power, enough to challenge and even beat the best fighters in the room.

"Woah, his hair is kinda like mine now, just more… spikey." Yang broke the silence.

"Oh. My. OUM! That's so cool, he was like aaaahhhhhh and BAM! He transformed, so cool." Ruby let her excitement out while Summer smiled at the innocence of her little rose.

"RENNY! Look he has lightning just like me, lightning pals." Nora squealed.

"Is no one going to touch his lack of eyebrows now?" Sienna asked but got no reply.

"**You should be proud of yourself, only Majin Buu has pushed me this far in battle before." Jaune spoke in a deeper, more powerful voice that would freeze the weak of heart in their tracks. A giant lightning bolt zapped by him and illuminated the land in a blue glow for a second.**

"Monty that voice." Pyrrha whispered what a handful of the women thought, those being team RWBY, Coco, Velvet, Winter, Neo, Glynda, Sienna, Cinder (begrudgingly) and the moms of team RWBY.

"**HE Janemba. Janemba." Janemba clapped like a child after being shown a trick, Jaune wasn't fooled for a second, "You act innocent but you're deadly." With that he launched to the obese monster, "It's over Janemba." The ground below him broke as he glided above it, Janemba tried to squash him with a slap however Jaune dodged it and started attacking the un-protected belly, he threw a combo of punches and kicks so fast and forceful that it pushed Janemba upwards into the air with every blow. This kept up until they reached the floating orbs, Janemba flicked his hand down so the orbs would send them back down in an attempt to end the vicious barrage, the plan only half worked as it did sent them back down however Jaune let out one more strike that sent Janemba flying out the orb ball pit and quite high up, Jaune didn't show mercy as he dashed up to meet Janemba and shot into the gut of Janemba, his fist covered in electricity that once connected, made Janemba plummet back down to the grounds of hell! Jaune growled as sparks covered his left arm, Janemba splashed into the orb pit and Jaune was read to finish this fight, he gathered energy into both his hands and with a cry shot towards the prone Janemba!**

**The beast sat up and could only stare as the gold fighter grew closer and closer until he made contact with his face and dug further and further down, making Janemba collapse in on himself.**

**Light exploded from Janembas body as he cried weakly and croaked his name in a distorted voice, his hand fell to the earth, signalling his defeat.**

**Jaune relaxed his stance with a tired smirk. "Hmm, that was weird."**

"Tell me about it." Jaune let out a breath now that it was over, he couldn't agree more with his counterpart, oh how wrong he was.

**Before Jaune could call it a day something started happening, the yellow form started to shift and mould, it came together into a smaller form that matched the height of a normal humanoid, the sickly yellow turned blood red, the body started to form, a tail dropped to the ground, the hips formed, then the torso followed by a chest and now a head. Once it was over the figure, presumed to be a new Janemba glared his yellow eyes over at the one that hurt him, his body now stood. This super Janemba now sported two horns around the back of his head, he had red skin that showed on his face, arms, lower belly and tail, he had white wristlets and ankle supporters while his chest, head and legs had purple bio armour.**

"What the? That's Janemba?!" was the reaction of the audience, some staying silent, wanting to see what happens next.

**Jaune said what was on most of his audience's minds. "…I don't like the feel of this."**

"Neither do I kid." Qrow took a swig from his flask.

"It would seem the Arc still has more fighting to do." Hazel spoke, crossing his massive arms.

"I don't think it'll be as easy as before." Illa said concerned. She was trying to be more open to the idea of co-existing with humans and this seemed like a good time to show her opinion on this.

"Jaune beat him already, he's got this in the bag." If only Yang sounded as convincing as she wanted to be.

**Janemba then shot towards Jaune with an ugly smile, who dodged a kicked aimed at his head and tried to swipe at his feet, Jaune dodged again and sent his own kick to Janembas head who blocked it with his wristlet and followed up with a swipe from his tail.**

"It would appear that Mr Arc has lost the advantage of speed, this Janemba will likely be faster due to his now smaller and skinnier frame." Glynda noted.

"We don't know if Janemba is use to this body though, Jaune could still have an advantage seeing as he's to his normal sized body, this is new for Janemba however." Pyrrha also used her years of combat and knowledge of the sport to share her thoughts.

**Jaune moved out the way out the floor cracked when the tail struck it, he pressed his palm to the floor to support his weight and sent a side way donkey kick to the demons face.**

**That pissed him off even more as he grabbed Jaune ankle after he recovered and swung him around which earned him another kick to the head.**

"Hey I'm the kick boxer round here blondie, be original." Mercury protested.

**Once Jaune escaped his grasp he blasted the demon who used his portal trick again as the ball headed for his face, the energy ball zipped throw the tear in reality which shocked Jaune, he forgot that was one of Janembas abilities.**

"While he has a new body he still retains his abilities, making him have the upper hand once more." Ironwood pointed out with Winter nodding her head in agreement.

**He focused once more and readied his stance only for a ripple to be seen in mid-air over his right shoulder, he sensed it and moved out the way as it impacted the ground he stood on and blew him away, he skidded to a halt and rushed back to the fight, landing a solid knee to Janembas nose and yet another spin kick to the face before appearing to the right of Janemba and tried to hit him with another blast.**

"Seriously?"

"Mercury shut it."

**Janemba wasn't having it as his body started to come apart in little cubes making Jaune miss his strike! He looked on confused only for the little cubes to come behind Jaune and form an arm that held a KI blast in hand and into Jaunes chest.**

"Oh hacks, I call hacks." Neptune shouted.

"Janemba is quite the formidable foe with all these techniques at his disposal." Ren wondered how Jaune could counter those damned techniques in order to win, it didn't seem possible unfortunately.

**Jaune stumbled back with a grunt while Janemba laughed sinisterly, the blonds body covered in bruising and scrapes. Janemba showed a toothy smile and then opened his jaws wide as a green beam left his maw and headed to Jaune.**

**The power of that attack sent Jaune back a few metres as his feet dug into the ground and made small trenches trying to stop himself. His gi torn up and smoke left his sore body as he took heavy breaths. Janemba closed the distance as he appeared before Jaune, he then bent down to pick up what looked like a small club, the weapon being dwarfed by the demons large palm…**

"What's he going to do with that small thing?" Vernal didn't see it beneficial to wield a weapon that size.

…**before he changed to structure of the club into a long sword that had a white handle, purple cross guard and ruby red blade.**

"…Never mind."

"He seems to be able to alter the material structure of anything he wishes and that can be deadly, especially for Mr Arc." Oobleck concluded while Watts nodded.

"My thoughts exactly. No matter how impossible that should be." He grumbled the last part of that.

**Janemba let out a happy chuckle of admiration and his next move was to swing his sword at the tired Arc!**

**Jaune barely managed to handspring backwards to dodge the blade, its slash cutting strands of hair, gi and an orb in half!**

"Okay, so not only can I cut things in half like a normal sword but even things out of range?" Yang was getting annoyed by how OP this thing was.

Ruby would have been gushing over the power of the sword if it wasn't trying to kill her friend that is.

**Janemba pressed on his assault with one hand wielding the sword, he raised the sword, light bouncing off its fresh steel as he brought it down in an attempt to cut the Arc in half, he missed but the cut made a large cut into the floor several feet long.**

**Jaune swung his arm in a counter attack, Ki in hand as he directed it at his opponents chest, Janemba slashed the ball of energy in half but that didn't stop it, as Jaune ducked to avoid the blade one half of the Ki blast hit Janemba in the torso, creating a fiery explosion that grew bigger as the second half made contact with the face!**

**As the range of the fire expanded Jaune flew out of the reaches, Janemba felt cosy in the flames as he smiled evilly, he pointed his sword towards the Saiyan with a slash, it was like a rainbow shot from the blade but this rainbow held no child like joy in its colours, it was more…dark.**

**Jaune took cover behind one of the many floating orbs as the Ki slash caught up with him it cut through the orb and the top of Jaunes shoulder. With a cry blood spurted from the wound!**

"JAUNE!" was the simultaneous cry from his friends and family, Jaune hand nearly broke from the vice like grip Pyrrha applied.

**The sliced orb fell apart as it showed Jaune, he grasped his shoulder in a vice grip causing the pain to flare up in an attempt to keep pressure on the slit as blood trickled down his limp arm, his only proof of pain was his grunts of discomfort.**

"I'LL KILL THAT EVIL BASTARD! NO ONE HURTS MY BABY BROTHER!" Saphron yelled with RWBY and NPR voicing their agreement making Jaune feel touched by their protectiveness.

**He had to duck out the way as another slash was aimed at his head, strands of hair suffering the fate instead, Janemba was merciless in his push, Jaune did the best he could to avoid all the sword attacks but with every little cut he sustained he fell more and more drained of energy, the strain of the Super Saiyan 3 transformation wasn't helping.**

"It would seem that he can no longer hold that form any longer." Con spoke up for a while.

"But why can't he?" Willow questioned.

"Unlike the other two forms, super Saiyan three drains the most stamina, it's the reason he didn't go all out in the beginning; you may be stronger sure…"

"But it's useless if you can't use it for long drawn out fights." Raven finished for him.

**He fell into a pool of blood that was suspended in the air, the strange part was the fact the shape was of a 3d cone.**

"…I'm not even going to ask how that's possible, I'll just say it's a thing of hell." Watts gave up.

"Maybe that's just it, you can't explain it and that drives you crazy, something hell would defiantly do." Mercury suggested making Watts glare at the smug prick.

**Jaune sunk deeper and deeper into the blood until he was dead centre looking at the demon, back to his base form on powerless to move or counter whatever Janemba would do.**

**Janemba raised his sword with both hands and executed an overhead stroke. It wasn't targeted at Jaune however, he made another slash, another miss, again and again until Jaune realized his bloody prison was getting smaller and smaller and with that he realized that Janemba was cutting down the blood cone to where he was held! With another cut, Jaune could see Janemba more clearly now as he was held by what resembled a ruby gem of blood.**

**The demon let out a low laugh as he swung his sword for the finishing blow as Jaune looked on terrified!**

"NO!"

"DAMMIT KID FIGHT!"

"It's over."

"The weak die."

"And the strong survive."

**Before the slash could hit Jaune, a feminine battle cry was heard and an orange Ki ball sored to Janemba, making his slash off point and instead of killing Jaune, released him as he dropped back down.**

"Thank goodness." Pyrrha let out a breath and loosened her grip on the poor boy who cradled his sore hand, she noticed "OH! Im sorry!" was her catchphrase.

"Whoever that was, im going to give him or her the biggest hug!" Nora declared.

"Hmm?" Salem was now interested, that cry gave her a theory on who it was.

"M'lady?" Tyrian was quick to ask his goddess.

"Nothing Tyrian, just thinking." She turned her eyes on a certain girl in the crowd.

**He fell onto his hands and knees as a voice spoke, making the audiences eyes widen at whose voice it was.**

"**How many times do I have to tell you that if anyone's going to end your existence, it's going to be me?!" The woman demanded with distain heard clearly in her tone.**

"No way!" Emerald screeched.

"I think im going to take back that hug." Nora decided with a uncharacteristically dark look in her eyes.

"Damn! Just my luck I get saved by-."

"**Cinder? But how?" Jaune asked as he sat down to catch a breath.**

"**I've been trying to answer that question myself Kakarot, I don't know how I got my body back." **

**Jaune looked back to Cinder, she didn't return the gesture as he back was still towards him. He noticed that she was wearing her black cat-suit, (the one she wore to infiltrate the CCT tower but without the mask)**

**Cinder's appearance was also different, her eyes were now aqua instead of fiery orange and her hair was golden and spiky instead of her long dark locks that descended over her left eye and shoulder. The gold locks stood at attention, more at the left side of her hair line, the hair that usually rested on her shoulder was now hanging at her back as some strands defied gravity while others hung due to gravity. She was in her Super Saiyan 2 form.**

"**It was as if death was a dream and I just woke up." She continued to glare at the monster before her.**

"**Ah! It must have something to do with the check in station being out of commission." Jaune theorised as his strength slowly came back to him, not enough to fight straight away unfortunately.**

"**It doesn't matter, I'm here and I'm ready to fight that's that. Now stay back while I handle this."**

"**But he's strong, I don't think he can be beat." His response was a smirk with an Hmph from the woman. She glanced up at her opponent "Don't worry, I have one thing in my favour, I have nothing to lose."**

**Jaune shot up to Cinder "What do you mean? Don't say that!" He argued with hands clenched, didn't she know that if you die in the other world your existence fades entirely? With no way to come back?**

"Why am I trying to stop her from fighting, if she wins it's a win for me, if she dies it's a win for me." Jaune spoke with venom making Pyrrha stare at him shocked by his words, he was never like this to anyone before, had her death by Cinder truly changed him this much?

Ruby, Ren and Nora just looked on concerned, they had seen this same darkness from their friend and leader but didn't know how to pull him out of it.

Pyrrha noticed the traded looks and decided to corner them for answers later on.

WBY were the same, the blond innocent noodle was never like this before.

"**You've been good Kakarot. I haven't, the afterlife quite frankly is intolerable for me, meaning fighting him will be an easy task besides anything is better than my existence here." She said with finality that Jaune couldn't counter.**

**Cinder and Janemba both floated over to a fresh battle ground for their fight, Janemba posed his sword in front of him like a swords man sign of respect but no such thing was found, only mock.**

**Cinder in turn created her signature two black glass swords, the right one held in a reverse grip as she got into an offensive stance. Time trickled on as neither made the first move.**

**The ground beneath Cinder caved in as she shot towards Janemba, both swords ready to remove his head, Janemba crouched as the swords sailed over him, as Cinder changed her grip from reverse to normal with her right hand she sliced at his exposed back only for the crimson blade to collide with it instead.**

**Janemba sent a kick towards Cinder, to which she placed her hand on the shin and leapt away to a safe distance, connecting her swords together by the hilts to form a bow she pulled the string back as 3 black arrows with orange tips formed at the ready, she released the string as they shot to her foe.**

**Janemba was confident as he closed his eyes and directed his sword to intercept the arrows, too confident it would see, he deflected two but the third pierced the left of his forehead! It didn't seem to kill him however. With a snarl he removed the arrow but as he clenched it the arrow exploded in his grip making his arm now a stump, he laughed after a few seconds confusing the Saiyans and watchers, they found out why as both wounds healed making the two Saiyans start to worry, could he be beat?**

**Janemba cut the bow in half as Cinder made them disappear and threw another Ki blast. Janemba phased out of existence the last second as it hit the ground behind him.**

**The action caught her off guard and suddenly had to block a kick that phased into existence and a upper swing kick. She launched at the arm that held the sword and put it in a lock. She managed to steal it and melt it until it was no longer usable, Janemba just laughed some more, it mattered not to him.**

**Cinder prepared to charge at him but paused as he started to phase, she quickly posed her hands for a blast that hit him during his phase. **

**Dazed he stumbled as Cinder made a long sword and ran to decapitate him only for Janembas hand to grasp her throat and start to extend as it lifted and pushed her into the orbs in the sky, one after the other her back ached as she collided with the hard orbs making her drop back to her base form.**

"Cinder!" Emerald cried out making Cinder wince in annoyance and seeing herself be rag dolled made her wince some more.

**After a few seconds her then let go of her and retracted his arm as she plummeted towards what looked a mountain made out of morning star balls (You know the spiky balls?) she was lucky to fall through several gaps but just as she was about to be impaled Jaune came to the rescue.**

"**Cinder!" Jaune managed to stop her fall and held her in a bridal position as he descended to the bottom.**

Pyrrha felt a little jealous, he never held her like that! And she loved the dense knight.

Cinder gritted her teeth together at the image, she wasn't some damsel in distress! And how did she lose worse than he did? He was a weakling! Tyrian and Watts laughing at her failure didn't help.

Emerald too grit her teeth but only because the Arc was holding her mistress, he should get his filthy paws off her!

**She obviously hated being held like that as she wrestled her way out of his grip and landed on the floor, Jaune propped her up on the smooth curves of one of the spheres and looked her up and down.**

**Her suit was torn in several areas and her body was covered in scrapes and bruises just like his as blood leaked from her forehead and down her face in a thin line.**

"**Why don't you just leave me be Kakarot? I don't need your damned assistance, do you hear me?" she snarled, her pride wounded from the embarrassing defeat. Jaune was use to this attitude "Yeah heh I know, I know." He chuckled like he was talking to friend and not a rival, that was their relationship after all, while they both acknowledged the other as a rival, Jaune saw her as a friend while she saw him as an annoyance.**

"So what, fire bitch and angst knight are frenemies in this world?" Qrow asked, ignoring the glare he got.

"In a way, Jaune managed to beat her when they first met and became the first super Saiyan before her, the form she thought she was destined to unlock first, his lack of respect also ticks off her highness, and the fact no matter how small, she can never seem to closed the gap in strength between them." The Human star system listed off.

**He then turned serious "But this time I'm going to need your help Cinder." He stood and faced the direction Janemba was, while he couldn't see him, he could sense him and he could tell Janemba was searching for them, just not using their energy to lock on to them and they lowered their power level as low as possible to hide as best they could, but they wouldn't have that luxury forever.**

**Cinder grunted as she stood, her body screamed in protest and she seemed to succumb to those screams as she stumbled back onto the ball. "Can he even be beaten?" she shot an arrow at the freaks head and he took it like it was nothing so she had her doubts. She groaned in pain.**

**But Jaune wasn't letting up, his previous thoughts vanished as he declared "Yes. If we work together, then there's still a chance."**

"Didn't they already try that?" Ruby asked.

"That wasn't working together like how partners operate, more so fighting after the other can no longer go on." Ghira pointed out.

"**What?! Come on! He picked us apart at our peak, now we can barely stand while he can keep going." She wondered if this fool hit his head at some point.**

"And with that attitude, they'd never have good coordination." Ozpin threw in his two cents.

"**Yeah, separately." He let that word hang in the air for Cinder to grasp fully.**

"Separately?" the theatre filled with that word.

"**Separately? Surely you're not suggesting…?"**

"Suggesting what? C'mon this is getting annoying." Whitely demanded in a snotty tone.

"**It's the only way." **

"WHAT IS IT? Seriously what are they on about, a technique or weapon or something?" Yang's patience was thinning.

"**We have to do fusion Cinder." He said with finality.**

"Wait. They're going to fuse? Does that mean they're going to combine their bodies?" emerald questioned

"I wonder if they fuse into a boy or girl." Neptune imagined.

"Maybe they'll turn into a futa!" Ruby said making the younger generations choke on their own spits and made Willow gasp while Kali let out a "Oh my!" behind her hand.

"HOW DO YOU KNOW OF THAT?!" Yang demanded, who was it, who tainted her baby sister? She'll rip them apart, if it was a boy, she would rip off what makes them a guy, if it was a girl she'd pound their face until they look like a truck hit their face.

"Oh it was on the computer search history after Blake Hmph-!" Ruby was cut off by the cat girl but the damage was done.

"BELLADONNA!" Yang was pissed, you knew if she said your second name.

"**You know better." She growled "Fusion." Even the word left a bitter taste in her mouth. "I'll never join bodies with you clown!"**

"**Would you rather us both be at the mercy of that monster? He'll tear us to shreds Cinder!" his ultimatum of either fusion or death hung in the air. "He's taken the entire universe captive."**

"**Tch! There is somethings a warrior just can't do. I'd rather die." She decided with her nose in the air to show her opinion on the matter.**

**Jaune let out a snort "You've been dead. Didn't you just say that anything was better than life here?" he asked rhetorically. That seemed to put Cinder in a spot of bother as she had nothing to counter that. **

**What they didn't know was that Janemba had found them! And was watching through the gaps of the morning star heads while they argued! Unaware of the danger that lurked.**

"Oh crap he's found them!" Oscar yelped.

"Get out of there!"

"**N! O! Kakarot! Not in a million years now don't ask me again!" Cinder shouted and that was final.**

"Quit the lovers spat and move your ass!" Qrow shouted making the two in question look annoyed by the "lovers" remark.

**Janemba drew a line in the space in front of him as what seemed like shards broke from the line and shot off towards the pair. Jaune sensed the energy used to make the attack "LOOK OUT!" he howled as the shards sped to them and through the small gaps, Jaune and Cinder barely managed to dodge them all as they went through the sharp mountain.**

**From their new spot Jaune got up and jogged to Cinders prone body, "Cinder? Are you okay?" he asked the woman while she laid there on her front, propped up by her elbows. "Am I okay? Do I look okay Kakarot?!" she growled while Jaune looked at her, not with pity as he knew she despised pity from others. He knew she needed to vent and so her stayed silent.**

"**The most painful thing is that- you have become stronger. While I've remained." She let tears fall from her eyes at what she was about to say, the effects of not having her body from before taking a toll on her emotions. "The same!" frustration slipped from her voice at this.**

Mercury and Emerald felt awkward seeing this, during the time they have served their mistress, she had never lost her cool, get annoyed yes but never let her emotions out like this. Being so use to how powerful, cool, calm and collected she was it was weird seeing this side of Cinder.

Jaune had conflicted emotions, this was the woman that caused him and others so much pain for her own desires yet he was raised to care for others and his years of teaching from his parents made him feel a flicker of sympathy towards the counterpart of the false maiden.

Cinder herself just grew agitated, was this version of her so weak as to cry in front of others? The blond fool no less? Damn it!

"Oh is little Cinder crying?" Tyrian mocked until he felt something hit his head, he turned to whoever dare throw it and saw the knight with another shoe in hand. "Why you little shi-!"

"How about I rip that tail off you and we can see whether or not you cry." He threatened which made Tyrians anger turn into sick amusement. "Oh? Standing up for your new girlfriend? Moved on from the red head quickly didn't you? HA! HA! AHA!" this made Jaune motion forward until Ren and Nora held him back. "Knew there was something interesting about you boy."

"Both of you sit down and shut up." Con ordered making them relent, Jaune in respect of the omnipotent being and Tyrian in remembrance of how his tail hurt.

For Cinder, she was annoyed and confused, oh great the knight was standing up for her now? But why?

**Jaune crouched down to her level "What you're saying is true Cinder, but you have to understand. I've been training in the otherworld this whole time, it's only natural that I've progressed ya know. I'm more amazed that you're just as strong as before, even though you didn't have a body to train in." he tried to comfort her.**

"That must be hell, to be in the afterlife but not even have a body to experience it." Roman said, he didn't remember much of his time in hell but he can tell he would rather deal with that than have no body.

**Cinder wasn't one to accept that though. "Dah. Don't belittle me with you pity Kakarot." She glared at the blond idiot. **

**Jaune didn't let it affect him. "Look let's just forget about fusion alright? It's been a while since we've seen each other and there's no sense in fighting." He smiled while Cinders glare lessened a bit at the smile.**

"**We better go. He's on the move, this place will be gone in 30 seconds sooo. We might as well get a move on. Grab a hold of me Cinder, we really don't have any time to spare." Cinder wasn't budging. **

"**I refuse to run." She spoke as she rose to her feet. **

"**We'll be slaughtered." Jaune declared.**

**Cinder body seemed to relax as her fists unclenched. "I can't run Kakarot, if I did then life too will be a hell." She turned her face to him "If I run life will be a hell, if I die it will be a hell so I only have one choice."**

"…"

"…"

"…"

"… **I'll do it. I'll do the stupid fusion technique." She pushed her pride down with that remark.**

"…**Cinder." Jaune whispered then smiled.**

**Suddenly! Jaune sensed another attack, the same one from before. Jaune latched onto Cinders arm and used Instant Transmission as the shards hit and this time exploded on impact.**

**Janemba surveyed the ruined mountain and laughed as he powered up. About 500 yards away Cinder and Jaune stood in a region of floating cubes atop of one cube.**

"**We better get started Cinder. Are you ready?" he got a silent nod.**

"**It's a simple technique, but we have to harmonise our spiritual energies or it won't work." Cinder continued to glare at her reflection in silence. "Our power levels have to be exactly the same. We also have to move in perfect sync, your posture has to mirror mine." Jaune instructed as he looked on while Cinder finally looked at the Arc in confusion.**

"**My what?" what did he mean?**

"**I'll show you, don't worry, it's not that complicated." He walked to a more open side in order to properly show it.**

"**It's kinda like a cross between traditional fighting stance and water ballet, except without the water." He spoke as he positioned his body in the starting pose.**

"**B**A**L**L**E**T**?!" Cinder of both worlds couldn't believe what she was hearing.**

"**Just watch for a second. It's easier to show than explain."**

**He posed his arms to the right with both hands flat out and fingers pressed to their neighbour, his heels pressed together and knees bent down and moved to the sides, he moved a few steps to the left as his arms moved to his left like he was using them to trace a rainbow. **

"**Fuuuuu…."**

**Still in the pose he continued to speak "now think of two rivers flowing towards one another that become narrower and narrower the closer they get to each other."**

"**Sion…" He shot his arms back to the right of him again, his hands now fists this time as he stood on his left leg, his right posed in a knee off the ground and pointing to the left.**

"**Note the opposing position of both knee and arms."**

"**HA!" the last pose had his body leaning sideways as his right arm stretched over his body with his index finger out and his other fingers closed, his left arm was posed in a 90 degree angle with the same hand gesture, his left knee bent to hold his pose while his right leg was pointed straight down on the ground.**

"**Two rivers converge at single points, points give way under the pressure and the rivers flood into each other and become one." He finished explaining to which Cinder reacted accordingly.**

"BA! HAHAHAHAHAHA!" Yang, Vernal, Neo (mute laugh), Mercury and a few others openly laughed at the ridiculous dance while others chuckled behind their hands or controlled their amusement.

Cinder was going to murder the Arc painfully after this.

"**YOU'RE INSANE! I'M NOT POSING LIKE THAT!" fuck it she'd rather die, she was ready to fuse but not in the way he described it.**

"I'd rather die as well." Vernal declared.

**Still posed Jaune insisted. "Why not? This is how it's done. There's no other way to fuse, c'mon." he couldn't understand why Cinder was so stubborn about a silly little dance.**

"**We're warriors Kakarot, not ballerinas."**

"**Well hey, so what if it looks a little funny. It's the end result we're concerned with. Besides we're all alone out here, no one's gonna see us."**

"EXCEPT US! HAHAHAHAHAHA!"

"Guys c'mon!"

"SHUT UP!"

**They practiced the technique a few times just to make sure no mistakes would happen, making Cinder die inside after each rehearsal. Good thing to, the first time Cinder had her fist clenched on the last sequence of the pose, who knows what could have happened.**

"**Okay, I think we've mastered the technique now let's synchronise our power level and do this." Jaune said which got him a nod, one more time, just one more and Cinder wouldn't have to hear about fusion ever again.**

"**FU-SION-H-!" they were interrupted as a Ki blast sored towards them, they jumped out of the way as Janemba emerged from the smoke.**

"**Cinder look out!" Jaune warned as Janemba came closer but was stopped by a kick to the back of the head by,**

"**PIKKON!" Jaune yelled in surprise and happiness at the intro of the green fighter.**

"**Never mind the formalities, times wasting, I'll hold him off. Go for it." Pikkon ordered.**

"**Awesome Pikkon! This is it Cinder, c'mon lets go." As they both shot off Janemba tried to follow only to be stopped by Pikkon again.**

"**You're a part of the insidious barrier aren't you? Which means you must have the same weakness." Pikkon deduced as Janemba growled, annoyed by this insect.**

**He charged at the fresh meat. "Disgusting freak!" Pikkon yelled and parts of Janembas front chipped away making him stumble forward.**

"Wait so all they had to do was insult him to win?"

"All they need is to find the Weiss of this world and she'd nag him to death."

"NORA! You take that back!"

"But it's true." "Nora." Ren reprimanded.

"It's not true! Right girls?" silence and glances to the sides "RUBY! YANG! BLAKE!"

**Pikkon moved behind him and let off a volley of Ki blasts to keep him down while the Saiyans commenced the dance in the back ground.**

"**FUUUUU!"**

**Jaune and Cinder commenced the first pose**

**Janemba phased out of existence again, catching Pikkon off guard.**

"**SIIIIOOOON!"**

**Both Saiyans leaned towards each other, index fingers pointed out.**

**Janemba snuck up on Pikkon, fists read to crush him.**

"**HAAAAAA!" **

**Their fingers connected like two rivers merging with grace.**

**Janemba slammed both fists into the sides of Pikkons head making him yell in pain as he applied more pressure.**

**A bright light illuminated the area as sounds that rivalled thunder claps echoed across the land. This got Janembas attention as he released the defeated Pikkon.**

**It was if a galaxy was born from this alone. As the bright light faded a new warrior stood where the two fighter previously were. **

**This figure was only in their Super Saiyan form but clearly held more power than the other fighters.**

**The warrior of light was a young beautiful woman that could charm the hearts of many men, her glare focused solely on Janemba that made him freeze at the cold intensity.**

**Her clothing consisted of black bandages to cover her chest while she wore a black open vest over it that had orange padding on the arm holes over the shoulders and neck hole that reached across the back of her neck to her chest, the vest itself reached down to her upper stomach and ended there. Her leg wear was the same gi trousers Jaune wore that was now white with a blue obi-belt. **

**Her appearance was a mixture of both Jaune and Cinder, she had Jaunes height with Cinders slim figure.**

**Her hair was mostly like Cinders, long locks over her shoulder and left side but some locks curved to the right of her head. The left side of her hair was sticking up at the hair line while the right side had more locks defying gravity just like Jaunes.**

**Her eyes were not the sharp ones Cinder had but the more soft ones Jaune possessed, the look was not soft in the slightest however, her facial features resembled the male Saiyan but in a more feminine manner.**

**She stood with straight posture and hands at the sides, ready to end this fight once and for all.**

**Her aura stood several times higher than her, like a fire as it cocooned her in its warmth.**

**She finally broke the stale mate silence as her voice sounded like Cinder and a feminine Jaune were talking simultaneously.**

"**I am not Jaune or Cinder. I am Jaunder (pronounced Jaune-der) it's over Janemba, I've come for you!" she declared shocking the demon.**

**She hardened her stare at him making him bellow and power up in as a way of challenging her power, Jaunder wasn't phased in the slightest.**

"**Every force you create has an echo. Your own bad energy will be your undoing." She powered up without another word making Janemba stop suddenly as he felt the pressure from the new fighter. Before he could regroup, she had closed the distance in mere milliseconds as his body was covered in blows, the force of trains hitting his body all over and he couldn't even see what was hitting him! Each blow set off a thunder clap.**

**Jaunder moved behind him, back towards him before she turned and delivered a vicious knee to the back of his head, and another one, she done one final back flip and let a bicycle kick to his chin as he turned the last second, she fell back to the ground on her feet graciously as Janemba stopped stumbling.**

**Jaunder raised one arm in the air, palm open with her back to the monster, she turned to face him, glare still in place as he gasped when he saw little bits of light converge to make a ball of energy that looked like it was made with all the colours of a rainbow, it shrunk to the size of a pin head and landed in her now clenched fist as light escaped the gaps of her fingers.**

**Janemba back pedalled, he was scared, he didn't know what that thing was but wasn't about to let her use it, he steeled his nerves and rushed her intending to stop her while she flung the light at his chest. He struck her face, landing a direct blow! But it had no effect, Jaunder still held her glare while Janemba felt a pain in his chest until his back imploded, the light now leaving through the open wound on his back as his body faded out of existence but not by his will, by the power of Jaunder, his screams fading shortly after the last remaining matter that made him evaporated.**

**The light spread out before it joined together once more to form a small boy that looked so innocent, this was clearly the mutated worker from what King Yemma explained before.**

**He looked up at the beautiful but deadly lady, turned tail and ran.**

**Jaunder stood there stoic for a while before laughing a beautiful laugh. It was over, they had won. **

And with that the screen turned black.

Con turned to his audience and looked like that one guy that shows you his favourite show and awaits you opinion. "Sooo? How was it?"

"It. Was. AWESOME!" Ah Nora, the one girl that will never let you down for reactions.


	2. Chapter 2

**AN: hey madcrew I just want to say how happy I was to receive your praise, I was really surprised by your enthusiasm and that made my week, I first thought readers would groan and be like 'another one?" but you have all surprised me, even one reviewer said something along the lines of "no way. A reaction fic that is actually great. THAT'S IMPOSSIBLE!" and I was like "Wow guys, just you know, give me a lot of bloody pressure with the other chapters, but non the less, here's chapter two, I don't know if you'll like it as much as the last one, if not tell me what made the first chapter so remarkable and I'll use those elements for other chapters the best I can.**

**Anyway, let's move on shall we.**

"So with that done, I would suggest a 5 minute break, just to discuss what you want, reconnect with those resurrected, go crazy. Not literally Tyrian, then again I'm about a decade late for that." Con suggested to which make the crowd go in their own groups. The rose- Xiao long family coming together. The member of the Branwen tribe figuring out how to get an upper hand due to their low numbers, the inner circles of both Ozpin and Salem discussed the situations, and how the Arc scorn of their world could be important, though both leaders may have not been paying that much attention as the two gods drew their focus.

The hunters in training decided to have a small reunion with each giving Pyrrha a large hug or handshake after seeing her being brought back to life, Nora giving an extra strong bear hug that Pyrrha missed dearly.

They started to introduce the shy Oscar to the group as well.

He stood still and nervous as Coco stood in front of him with a calculating gaze, he sunglasses not allowing Oscar to see her amusement, his fears were washed away (or increased) as she wrapped him in a hug and rubbed her cheek on the top of his head. "AW you're just the most adorable cinnamon role I have ever seen!" Coco teased while Velvet tried without much success to get her to release the poor farm boy. The others laughing at the scene, Jaune was cut off from laughing as he felt a pull on his ear. "AH!" he cried in slight pain and saw his eldest sister holding his ear hostage with a loving smile, but Jaune knew better.

"So my baby brother. Mind telling me what. In Monty's. Name. Are you doing?"

"O-okay Saph' I know I messed up, AH!" tug. "But I have an explanation."

"Oh really? Care to indulge me?"

"I don't think you'd want to hear that."

"Whatever reason dear brother?"

"I didn't say it was a good reason. AH!" extra hard tug.

Terra decided to step in before her brother in law lost an ear. "Saph'." She said in a stern tone to which the blonde huffed and let go before bringing him in for a hug. "I'm sorry, I just. 'hic' I was so afraid when I heard of what happened to beacon." She started to lightly sob making Jaune hold her close and whisper in her ear words of comfort.

Pyrrha grabbed Nora and Ren by their shoulders as they turned their attention from their distracted leader to her. "Look, I know something is up, you all keep sharing these looks whenever Jaune acts… differently, so when we have the chance, we are going to have a long talk." She said with utmost seriousness, all they could do is nod, dreading this upcoming talk.

"Right, if we could each go back to our seats we can continue with this new world." Con spoke with authority to which they obeyed.

The portal swirled to life and begun.

**What the audience was shown was a part of their world that only the gods, Ozpin, Salem and Salem's inner circle while those unfamiliar to this corrupt land gasped at such darkness. The moons destroyed body floating in its ruined glory as clouds of red and black blocked any form of light from kissing the cracked and rocky ground.**

Those unfamiliar to such lands gasped in horror while some controlled themselves from showing weakness.

**And there, among that damned part of their world stood its creator, The God of Darkness, his body stood straight and radiating power with his arms behind his back and his back to the audience. The four relics before his feet as he saw his Grimm stalk towards the living of this world, hope fleeting for those that stood before his might.**

"It appears that I am the star this time." G.O.D spoke.

**Jaune was among those that wouldn't roll over to this self-righteous deity. But he had a trick up his sleeve, or technically wrapped along his sleeve. He looked to his left arm. A green light illuminated from his chest as the amulet he wore, its true name being, the Eye of Agamotto, rested on his chest.**

"What's with the necklace?" Mercury asked.

"It's an amulet you uncultured swine." Whitely opened his big mouth.

"That is what is known as the Eye of Agamotto. A powerful item, not the amulet but what it holds. An item so powerful, it alone makes the relics look like mere trinkets, along with its other brethren." Con said in an anonymous tone.

The God of Light was now intrigued, an object more powerful than the relics he bestowed upon Ozma?

**He waved his right hand across his left forearm as small green glyphs appeared along his wrist, like a bracelet that spun endlessly.**

"So Arc has my something similar to my semblance?" Weiss asked, her sister wanting to ask the same question.

"No actually. That is a form of magic." Con answered.

"What!?" Ozpin and Salem both yelled and screeched respectively. Magic? How did the Arc get his hands on the same power that was now only accessible to the wizard and Grimm queen, did it have to day with the other universe or did he find a way to manipulate it just as they can?

"Jaunes a magician in this world?" Neptune asked.

"Maybe Jaune can wear a top hat and pull Velvet from out of it." Coco teased making said Rabbit Faunus have a slight tick.

"Back to the glyphs, what is that?" Ironwood wanted to know more about that.

"And why is he going up against the ultimate Goth?" You talking mad shit for someone within 'divine retribution' distance yang.

**The God of Darkness seemed to sense him as he turned casually but with grace to face the Arc.**

**Jaune walked towards his foe without hesitation, nor fear, nor arrogance, but with purpose yet he gave no evidence that he had a plan to combat this deity.**

**The G.O.D was angered slightly by this lack of fear and he grew in size, to the height of 15 meters, Jaune himself floated to a cliff that would allow him to properly face him, as to not be looked down upon, he would not give this bastard the pleasure.**

**Jaune took some more steps towards the edge of the cliff and looked to his wrist one more time to reassure himself. Making eye contact once more he spoke in a tone that let no form of terror seep through.**

"**God of Darkness, Brother to the light and creator of this world. I've come to bargain." He spoke his intentions that left the audience and both G.O.D's in confusion, would could a mortal offer a God?**

"The fool, he should have just escaped while he had the chance, no way can he stand against a god." Raven spoke with Vernal nodding, Salem was reluctant to agree, she had an army of followers, each equipped with their own magic and had failed miserably, yet this boy stood against him alone. He had no chance.

Jaunes friends and family were worried for this world version of their friend.

**The God before him voiced his thoughts in a voice that would leave brave men in a cowering mess, Jaune was no such man, he was more and he wouldn't be intimated.**

"**You have come to die, I have come to reclaim this retched world that we so foolishly left to your care, you mortals." He uttered the last word as if it left a horrid taste of rotten flesh in his mouth. "Before, I had wiped out the inhabitants of this world when they had journeyed to challenge me and that is how the second race of Humans and now Faunus came to be, yet I can see you were a mistake, I shall erase all life and start again, hopefully the third times the charm as you mortals claim." **

"Wait what?" Taiyang blanched along with the audience who hadn't known this fact, their world had life before, a original race of people before they were killed?

"Yes. The human race were fooled by the words of an immortal woman who made them think that they had a chance to defeat the brothers, brave but foolish they were." Con supplied with Salem narrowing her eyes.

**Suddenly purple shards came out of nowhere and hurtled to the Arc, before they could piece his flesh, he summoned a domed shield of magic to protect him, like gunfire, these shards world bury themselves into the blue shield until Jaune dropped it, making the shards that stabbed the dome fall to the floor, but more came.**

"Oh no." Pyrrha whispered in dread.

"Got to hand it to ya kid, those some fast reflexes." Qrow praised with Raven and Winter nodding.

**Jaune summoned two more glyphs to fit his hands and used them as smaller shields, blocking, deflecting and batting away the shards. When a new barrage of projectiles sped to him in all directions he made more glyphs to counter them, making them appear in a foot radius and spun widely making a show of sparks and splintered shards.**

**This act of pointless defiance annoyed the God and with that he gathered his energy into his palm and crushed the sphere he created, thus causing his power to implode and move across the lands, made of pure God like power, erasing anything that was before it, the portal backpedalled to show the audience how that wave crusaded along the planet and soon, completely covered the planet in purple as a dark aura left the surface on this now lifeless, desalt world.**

"My god." Kali breathed while her husband held her close, others doing the same for their respected loved ones, seeing humanity and Faunus alike get completely wiped out would leave you empty and void, seeing everything that they created, the lives that built be erased like a drawing on paper was too much, Willow nearly vomited on the floor had Con not made a sick bucket for her.

**The image before them then seemed to stop and suddenly started reversing, like it was footage of a camera being replayed backwards, showing the wave of destruction go back, the people and structures being spat out and fine, all the way back to the G.O.D and the mortal and even to where he floated to the same cliff to confront the brother.**

"**God of Darkness, brother to the light and creator of this world. I've come to bargain." Jaune repeated.**

"What is this?! Some sick joke? To watch my brother die again, once wasn't enough?!" Saphron demanded from the humanoid Constellation.

His lack of an answer made her nearly leap at him in a frenzy, if it wasn't for Jaune holding her back.

"Just watch and you'll see." Was all they got as an explanation, making some frown.

"**You have come to die. I have come to reclaim th- what?" this… this isn't what the dark brother said before.**

This break in speech shocked them all, wasn't he about to bring hell fire on Jaune but now he's jumbling his speech.

The G.O.D narrowed his non-existent eyes, what just happened?

"**What is this? Some little illusion, your semblance?" he demanded to know but didn't hold back the mocking tone when he referred to the concept of semblance, the little grasp of magic they hold onto. Back to his question, hadn't he just annihilated this planet and its inhabitants?**

"So he has Emeralds semblance and just tricked the brother?" Mercury wondered aloud as Emerald dawned a calculating look.

"**No this is real." Jaune confirmed, still not giving away any form of dread in his posture or voice.**

"There's your answer, but not much information to go on." Li Ren.

"**Good." The G.O.D smirked as he blasted his power form his mouth, a beam headed straight for Jaune, who retaliated as he created a glyph that did not hold for long, it broke as he was then erased, dust left from his wake along from the ground.**

"NO!" Pyrrha cried out in remorse, what was the point in bringing her back if all she was forced to watch the man she loved suffer at the hands of deaths in such horrible ways.

Ruby's silver eyes filled with tears as she tried to find some comfort in the arms of her mother, but no such thing was found.

Weiss blanched at the suddenness and brutality, back at beacon Jaune may have annoyed her but she never wished pain or death on him.

Adrian thankfully wasn't exposed to such a sight, Con had made sure that anything too violent was filtered to not be seen for the baby.

Sickos like Tyrian felt a sense of excitement at such scenes. What'd you expect from the sick fuck?

**His remains floated for a few seconds before the portal was paused and rewound once again. The ashes of Jaune coming together and there stood the sorcerer, reanimated.**

**He levitated to the cliff again.**

"**God of Darkness. I've come to bargain." Despite the rewind, he had said it differently this time just as his opponent did before.**

"**You- WHAT IS HAPPENING?" the Darkness given form bellowed agitated, he had just killed the pest had he not?! Wiped him from existence, blown him away with just his breath did he not?!**

"**Just as you have divine abilities from whatever made you, I have a power from this universe that we both share and just as you obey the laws of life and death, you'll have to obey this law." Jaune lifted his arm to show the green glyphs.**

"**This, is time!" he finally revealed the secret weapon. "Endless, looped, time." He explained.**

"So this magician just broke his rule and revealed his trick." Roman smirked.

"Time? He can manipulate time?!" Raven shouted.

"Okay that is too OP." Sun complained.

"He alone cannot control time. He is using what is known as the Time stone." He casted a projection in his hands, it was total darkness until a bang of light was shown.

"The big bang had sent 6 elemental crystals, hurtling across the virgin universe, known as Infinity stones, stones of unimaginable power, each a representation of the universe, at least in that universe. Each controlled an essential aspect of existence, space, reality, power, soul, mind and time." Each stone glowed at their own title as the large group stared in awe and some in want.

"What this Jaune has is the time stone."

"**YOU! DARE!" **

The bellowing voice from the original projection brought them back to what they were originally watching.

**Forget agitated, drop angered, he was now furious, this insect dared mess with such a concept that he should be unworthy to wield, the God of Darkness could not allow such a disrespectful creature to live. He brought his hand high into the sky before he slammed his large hand to where the Arc stood, who had not even tried to dodge.**

**He came back.**

"**God of Darkness. I've come to bargain." He shouted once more.**

"**You! You cannot do this forever." The deity said, trying to convince himself unknowingly as well. Sadly, Jaune gave him a reality check.**

"**Actually I can." He smirked just to further piss off the Supreme Being.**

"**You once said to another mortal that stood before you, that even you and your brother had to obey the rules of reality, while she was a grieving and selfish woman turned tyrant by your poor choices, I stand against you, I challenge your authority not for my own needs or gains, but for the people of this world, the ones you feel you have the right to kill. And just like the law of life and death, you have to obey the laws of time, something that is more powerful than you." Jaune spoke, as if to an entitled brat.**

"**So now, this is how things are now. It's just you and me, trapped in this moment, this fight. Forever." **

"So blondie tricked him, this boi just tricked a god, not gonna lie that takes some balls, respect." Vernal admitted.

"Uh? Thanks I guess."

**The blond sorcerer was right, while the G.O.D could create worlds, destroy life with a snap and travel distances that would take man 1000 years in mere seconds he could not defy time, he could not leave its grasp on him. But he could kill the mortal that trapped him, he could vent his anger onto the insect and the boy coming back only allowed him the chance to think and do any forms of killing and torture to the point where he would. Break. Him.**

"**Then you will spend eternity dying." The gleefulness in his threat was obvious, yet the smugness evaporated when the boy still had no fear.**

"While he may have trapped the god in a loop, Mr Arc is trapped with him, and an angry God certainly isn't good." Ironwood noted.

"Especially if said deity has no problem with killing you." Watts followed up.

"**Yes." Jaune admitted, knowing what was to befall upon his decision. The consequences that would follow. "But everyone on Remnant will live." **

"Sniff' that's something Jaune would do isn't it." Ruby sniffled with RWBY and NPR nodding.

"Of course I would, you're the ones that matter." Jaune said, undervaluing himself subtly, not enough to escape the notice of his teammates how just looked pained at his self-doubt.

**Suddenly Jaune started to do a sequence of hand gestures before a golden light surrounded the two only for it to be dropped confusing the divine being.**

"**And to make sure that Remnant is no hostage of our dispute or your temper tantrums, I just sent us to a whole different, pocket dimension, so while you and I continue this cycle, the world can continue as if nothing happened. Until that is you escape time itself." This move made the God feel untouched levels of fury, his body quaked as if about to erupt.**

"So now, it truly is just the two of them." Said Port. Humbled by the Arcs selflessness.

"**YOU! YOU LOWLEY, PATHETIC, WORTHLESS INSECT OF MY GREATNESS! I WILL MAKE SURE TO KILL YOU OVER AND OVER IN THE MOST PAINFUL AND HORRENDOUS WAYS POSSIBLE THAT WOULD MAKE MY GRIMM DIE OF FEAR ALONE! YOU WILL SPEND ALL OF ETERNITY SUFFERENING AND BEGGING FOR MERCY!" the G.O.D promised but it had no effect on Jaune.**

"**Pain is an old friend."**

Once again, those that knew and cared for Jaune grew concerned at his statement. What had this Jaune Arc gone through? Did they even want to know?

**This sentence alone sent the deity into a rampage as he unleashed his anger in the form of a beam from his maw once more, killing the arc again. His screams of pain music to the gods ears.**

"NO! STOP IT! PLEASE JUST STOP IT! I CANT WATCH THIS!" Pyrrha threw herself into the arms of her partner as she trembled and wept. Everyone was silent after her outburst and some agreed with her.

Con sighed and floated towards the pair and knelt to their level.

"Pyrrha I know you are the last person to want to see such a thing, but to not would be insulting what this version of your hearts attraction has done to protect you, the sacrifices he made in your name and others. I can't change what we watch until it is over, so please, you must endure it. For him." He rested his hand on her shoulder as a comforting gesture, while the message had gotten across she refused to look at the portal again, wanting to stay in the arms and warmth of Jaune as a coping mechanism.

Con turned to his guests "That goes for all of you, however if you wish to turn away, then feel free. But know that not every universe we visit will be happy like some would prefer, I am sorry." He offered his apologise as some shared glances and followed his advice, people like Ren and Nora holding each other close, eyes away from the portal, along with Ruby and Saphron, other watched with hesitation, some with cold indifference other reasons.

**The 4****th**** time. **

**The 4****th**** time he killed him.**

"**God of Darkness."**

**Spikes sprung from the ground before him and pierced his weak body, holding his corpse above ground.**

"**I've come to bargain." Only for the god to demand "END THIS!"**

**He send a black ball to crush his foe.**

**The 10****th**** time he killed him.**

"**God of Darkness."**

**Vines wrapped around his body to suffocate him and squeeze the life from him, blood trickling down his mouth as the life left his eyes and chocked gasps was the only sound he made.**

**The 37****th**** time he killed him.**

"**Brother to the light."**

**He set the boy on fire this time, black fire sparked from **_**inside**_** him, cooking him alive, he could only scream in pain for a few minutes before his throat was turned to a crisp.**

**The 72****nd**** time he killed him.**

"**Creator of Remnant."**

**This time he created a back of beowolves. A hungry pack of beowolves, they tore the flesh from his body, opened his torso and feasted while Jaune could only watch helplessly before a beowolf lunged for his face.**

**The 115****th**** time he watched him die.**

"**I've come to bargain." He said as if he hadn't just seen himself be devoured.**

**The dark God sent a wave of shards that ripped him apart.**

**The 299****th**** time he executed him.**

"**God of Darkness."**

"**God of Darkness."**

"**God of Darkness."**

"**God of Darkness." He said the last one with finger guns, like he was talking to a **_**buddy**_**!**

**He broke his bones.**

**400****th**** time.**

**He sawed him in half.**

**756****th**** time**

**He removed his limbs, one. By. One.**

**918****th**** time.**

**Made him drown in the same black liquid his Grimm spawned from.**

**1100****th**** time**

**Stabbed tiny needles into his every nerve.**

**8238****th**** time**

**Crushed him in his own hand, **_**slowly.**_

_**12463**__**rd**__** time.**_

_**Disintegration.**_

_**1487829**__**th**__** time.**_

With each death being either witness or heard, those that couldn't stand it tensed up after each kill, every impalement, every crushing noise, every finishing blow, others like Salem didn't flinch, even at the most cruel ends, having been use to such sights, hunters used to the sight of people eaten alive.

It didn't mean they like it however.

**By the time he reached his millionth time killing the mortal he was enraged. As time when on, repeating over and over he lost the sense of joy with each cries of pain and vision of death, he grew annoyed when the Arc would only come back for more. Always saying. The. Same. Damned. LINE!**

"**God of Darkness. I've come to bargain."**

**He sent pulses of energy at the sorcerer while said sorcerer blocked them, being pushed back with each block, like a train was ramming into him, but he wouldn't give up, he could fall down, he could stumble, he could be pushed, he could be sent to the ground and land square on his face, but with each time he bested the God.**

**Because every time he got right back to it, no matter the gruesome death, the painful torture, the humiliating punishment. He would define his victory as getting up one more time, than he had been knocked down.**

**He was sent to the rocky terrain, his back making an unsettling sound after the impact before he turned on his stomach and pushed himself up, his body screaming in protest.**

"**You will never win." the God reminded Jaune, his opposing form still standing tall and looking down on him.**

"**N**o**." both Jaunes agreed. At least not the way the God defined victory. "**But **I **can** lose, **again** and again and **again** and again **f**o**r**e**v**e**r**." They spoke with cemented will, nothing would break him. Not while he had a family to protect.**

"**And that makes you my prisoner." He declared making the God up his game.**

"**NO!" he sent more shards at Jaune to kill him.**

**Only for him to once again, float back like nothing happened.**

"**STOP! MAKE THIS STOP! SET ME FREE!" G.O.D demanded.**

"Guess someone did break and it wasn't the angst knight." Qrow spoke in a sombre tone, still affected by the montage of death of the _kid._

"**No." Jaune denied his request. And if the god had been listening, he would know what Jaune wanted, guess he would have to say it. On last time.**

"**I've come to bargain." It was like those words took the form of a drill and was drilling its way into the god's ear. **

"It would seem that Jaune now has the upper hand." Ghira spoke out holding his shaken wife close.

"**What do you want?" Never had that combination of words, those words themselves been so vile to say. Here he was, a being above all other forms of life, taking demands from this lowly mortal.**

"**Take your essence of darkness, your corrupted lands, your Grimm from Remnant, end your reign and their reign of my world and never come back." His demands spoken, now he had to speak his offering, though it should be enough.**

"**Do it. And I'll break the loop." That was his bargain, to take his evil creations in order to be free. Didn't sound too bad a deal does it?**

**Jaune had taken them out of the pocket dimension and with a grunt of dismay, the God done just that. The people of Remnant felt a tremor on their world and saw black pillars of ash rise to the heavens all from around the world, any land that was touched by the dark energy was reborn into fresh lands, Grimm evaporated and the clouds of those lands turned back to its normal blue sky and white clouds, the sun finally kissing the earth.**

**As Jaune saw the God beginning to leave he was blinded by a white light.**

**There he stood, alone. Nothing but pure white. "Hello?" his voice echoed "Where am I? Am I dead?" he wondered aloud.**

"**No. no you are not." A voice joined his.**

**He spun around to see the God of Light.**

"**So you succeeded, you got what you wished for, and banished my brother. But at what cost? The chance to play a god yourself, messing with time for your own gain, I had hoped that this second chance, my second creation of your race would prove to be the perfect creation, but I was wrong, despite this second chance, you have failed in my judgment." The G.O.L said, convinced that he was right, he was about to continue until he heard it.**

**A snort.**

**A snort of **_**amusement**_**.**

**He turned back to the human that dared laugh.**

"**It's just funny, you stand there and judge others when you have the biggest target, we have a saying. He who lives in a glass house shouldn't throw rocks or something like that."**

"**What can you? A childish mortal have to judge about me?" the God demanded to know, wanting to hear the mortals words. Expecting him to stutter and not reply.**

**He was disappointed.**

"**It's just the fact that you fucked up the most, sending a grieving woman into a pit of depression, by making sure she can never join her love in the afterlife and then when she curses your name you have the gall to stand there and act like she isn't your fault, it was you that made her like this, the Grimm queen, I wonder how many people would be alive or have lived their full lives if it wasn't for you actions, making the second race of humans deal with your mess. And here's the thing you almighty god." He said with no respect what so ever.**

"**We humans and Faunus, we know our flaws, we have selfish desires, we're childish, self-righteous and downright arrogant at times, but if you made us, if we were created in your image, then I guess we must have gotten these negative traits from somewhere." Jaune finished, his un-said accusation hung in the air.**

"**Well then, I see that you truly are a childish being, blaming others for your flaws. And with that, I shall take my leave." Before Jaune knew it, he was now standing in a lush green field with birds chirping nearby and other critters simply living life. **

"**Huh. It's weird, he calls us childish but he felt the need to throw in that last thing as if to have the last word. Guess we can add hypocrite to the list."**

"I understand if that was too much for some of you, please, I have rooms designed to your specifications, feel free to rest there for a while and gather your bearings, your rooms have your symbol and can only be access by you and those you allow in. in 2 hours' time, we shale eat before we commence with the viewings… im sorry that you had to see that. But I need you all to know that not everything will be fine and dandy, there is darkness in each world, whether or not their Jaune falls to it is up to him, but know that you must be strong, there's a reason for your being here." Con said to the silent audience before he left, each group left the viewing room at different times, Pyrrha having to be carried to her room by Jaune as each left the already silent room.

**Felt the need to point this out, but these lot didn't see him die a million times, im just saying how many times the dark brother of the viewed universe saw and committed the murders.**

…

**Alright I will see you later.**

**Also once again thank you for the support, I appreciate it, even Gadget916 commented and I can't help but feel he made that Jaune transforms into ssj3 due to my previous story or if im sounding arrogant, non the less, check out his stories, he has made some great works and he should appreciate his own works cause I know he has made great stories.**

**MADMAN OUT!**


	3. AN NOT CANCELLATION! NEW STORY

Hello slaves to my story- i mean- lovely followers...

I just uploaded another story, this is a crossover fic, feel free to check it out and you can give me feedback on whether or not i should continue it. It is called young avenger young justice on the avengers crossover fic, if you cant tell what the other series is then... well damn.

Also, i have been messing around with chapters for multi-arc-verse but im just trying to let it flow and not feel forced otherwise it just transforms from a "harry potter and the prisoner of Azkaban" into a "harry potter and the cursed child" for those that understand what i mean then you get a cookie.

Non the less i hope you give it a look and feedback if its a yay or na type story But with college out the way i should have some free time but im also looking into apprenticeships so dont get your hopes up like orphan on Christmas or a middle age man at a restaurant on his birthday, hoping the staff dont start singing happy birthday. Now you got a taste of my dark humour so... Madman out!


	4. Chapter 4

_**At the gates of the famous and open Fanfiction, a commotion was breaking out at the gates, like someone was being forced out.**_

_***BAM!* MADMAN479R held onto the gates with a death grip while two Fanfiction enforcers tried to shove him out.**_

"_**PLEASE DON'T KICK ME OUT! I WANT TO STAY PLEASE, IM SORRY MY UPDATE SCHEDULE IS SHIT, BUT PLEASE LET ME STAY! I DON'T WANT TO GO TO WATTPAD, THEY TOO LAZY AND BROING STORIES, I DON'T WANNA GO TO AO3 EITHER! TOO MANY NON-CON FICS! PLEASE LET ME STAY!"**_

"_**You promise to upload sooner?" one enforcer demanded.**_

"_**YES!"**_

"_**Okay, this is your only warning though." Both let him go as he breathed a sigh of relief.**_

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

"So before we begin this more, light hearted viewing, I would like to bring some more guests along, 6 in total." Con announced.

"Who are they?" Ironwood asked with suspicion.

"Oh you're familiar with most of them General." A bright light filled the room as 5 people and one dog appeared.

"What the fu-"

Ironwood interrupted that thought "Ace Ops?" he spoke as he saw the person team.

"General?" Clover, leader of the team questioned. "What's going on?" Marrow shouted as he looked around in a haste.

_**ONE EXPLENATION LATER**_

"And that's it." Ozpin told the team.

"So let me get this straight." Harriet started, "We have been kidnapped."

"Yep." Roman nodded.

"Some raised from the dead."

"Basically." Vernal confirmed.

"All to watch blondie in alternate worlds?" she finished.

"That's the gist of it." Jaune agreed.

Pyrrha also had a question, "From General Ironwood's reaction, I know that they are related to his Atlas forces but…" she looked at the Puggle Wuggle that had tackled both her and Jaune during the commotion.

"You see, that good girl known as Hera, is a dog you and Jaune own in another Universe, I figured you would need the emotional support after the last viewing." Con explained as the dog licked the champion and the knight.

"AWWW! She's so cute" Ruby and Weiss started petting the walking, fluffy pillow as she barked in pleasure. "I bet she and Zwei would be best friends!" This got Hera's attention as she saw the corgi and zoomed towards it, seeing her fellow dog, the fact he was from a different reality didn't bother her at all. Both dogs playing as those around cooed at the sight, those that didn't just rolled their eyes and didn't take notice at all.

"Now, lets start the next world shall we." Without complaint, everyone sat down, Clover sat next to Qrow and gave the man a friendly smile, getting a hesitant one in return.

**It was Dustmas Eve, not a creature was sti-**

***BEEEEEEEEEP***

***BEEEEEEEEEP***

***BEEEEEEEEEP***

"Is that an alarm?" Ruby asked.

"It's Dustmas in this world?" Emerald wondered.

"Pft! Whats so great about Dustmas anyway?" Mercury scoffed.

"Dude lighten up." Sun shook his head.

"I actually have a question, how does the jolly man get to the kids in the apartments?" Clover decided to try and ease the tension.

"They have to buzz his ass in." Qrow joked, getting a laugh from the military Huntsman. Huh, someone appreciated his quips.

**Ahem. As I was saying. Not a creature was stirring**

"Accept for the ass holes in 2B." Roman continued the joke.

***BEEEEEEEEEP***

***BEEEEEEEEEP***

***BEEEEEEEEEP***

"Somebody turn it off already!" Weiss demanded.

Roman was amused, "Kinda quick to anger there ice queen." He chuckled only to get an icy glare that had no effect on him.

"You deal with a snoring brute that doesn't even hear her own alarm in the morning, when she keeps accidently setting it to 5am!" Weiss turned her glare to the blonde who whistled innocently, avoiding eye contact.

**NOT A CREATURE WAS-**

***BEEEEEEEEEP***

***BEEEEEEEEEP**

***BEEEEEEEEEP***

**WOULD SOMEONE JUST HIT THE GOD DAMN SNOOZE BUTTON ON THAT THING ALREADY! OR MAYBE THE FAT ASS THAT USES IT WILL F***ING WAKE UP ALREADY!**

"That was just uncalled for." Kali decided

**A rather large bellied man turned over to address the nuisance to his slumber, it was Jaune! But with a white beard and rosy cheek. He was Santa Clause!**

"JAUNE JAUNE'S SANTA!" Nora cried with delight.

"Im Santa in this one?" Jaune asked.

Con was stupefied by the question, "we just witnessed you and Cinder fuse to fight a get skinny quick demon and then watched you take on a god and this is what stumps you?" he asked the now blushing blond.

"Seriously, what part of 'infinite universes and possibilities' do you not understand."

"Okay man lay off!"

Ruby, surprisingly wasn't so happy. "Jaune how could you!" this got some strange looks for the fellow guests, even Tyrian.

"Sweetie?" Summer questioned.

"Oh yeah I forgot." Taiyang spoke.

"What is it, from what I know, human and Faunus children adore the fat man don't they?" Salem was confused.

Ozpin was also baffled, his ex-wife kept up to date on holidays? They sure didn't have Dustmas when they were together.

"Well." Yang began, "She sorta hates Santa, or at least doesn't trust him." she rubbed the back of her head.

"Why?" Neptune was answered by the Rose.

"WHY?! This guy is a criminal!" Ruby argued.

"How friend Ruby?"

"He is breaking and entering! And he has a face that's all red meaning he's been drinking, smelling like he's been smoking and is a morbidly obese, old man that is let into the house because 'he has something for the kids'?" Ruby listed off.

"…"

"…"

"…"

"Well, thanks Ruby, I may never be able to think of Santa the same again." Blake said.

**He looked over at the clock at his bed side table with a tired smile, ready to get on with the most important day of the year, his clock read:**

**DEC 24. 11:59**

…

…

…

**Oooooooohhhh crap.**

"**Jumping Jehovah!" Jaune cried out as he leapt from his bed, hastily putting on his winter coat and hat, his black belt fumbling in his shaking hands.**

"**It's one minute to Dustmas!?" he was in disbelief, surely he hadn't over slept.**

"He has one shift of the whole year and he over slept?" Cinder couldn't grasp the idea of it.

**Meanwhile, the elves in Jaune's workshop were also in a deep sleep. Their cute little snores filling the workshop. Only a slave driver would ruin such a moment.**

"Awwww." Some of the audience cooed at the sight.

"Ah they're so cute!" Nora said.

"Another reason!"

"What now Ruby?" Sighed her partner.

"Slavery." Was the answer.

"Oh for fu-."

"WEISS!" exclaimed her sister.

**BAM! The door was kicked open by their boss.**

"**PACK THE TOYS!" Jaune ordered as elves shot up, some scampering around, others working on the toys in front of them without really any progress.**

"**GET MY LIST!" Jaune demanded from another random worker.**

**He then marched on as he continued to rattled off, "AND IF THOSE FLEA BAGS ARENT SADDLED IN 6 SECONDS, THEN GET YOUR ASS UNDER THE MISTLETOE, BECAUSE MY BOOT IS GONNA GIVE IT A F***IN' SOUL KISS!" He finished as he came beside another elf who was nervously hammering a rubix cube.**

Yang, mercury, vernal, neo, Roma, Nora and a few others laughed at that threat. "I'll have to use that." Mercury said.

"**AND WHO WAS IN CHARGE OF MY WAKE UP CALL!?" oh he was gonna stuff that poor elf with toys and use him as his new gift bag.**

**The elf he stood next to nervously lifted a trembling hand as he admitted his fault. Hopefully Santa would be merciful**

"It's Jaune, of course he'll forgive the little guy." Yang convinced herself.

**He got back handed into next year by a pissed off saint.**

"Damn!" Marrow cried.

"He got knocked the fuck out!" Vernal laughed.

**Outside, another elf was just finishing up the sleigh for the "Jolly" spirit of Christmas.**

**Jaune looked as his reindeers were tied together in an ugly mess. Turning to the little creature, Jaune was understanding. **

"**Pack ya sh** and get out." He dismissed the now jobless midget, who hung his head in shame. Jaune jumped into the sleigh, bag in the back and an elf in the passenger seat. **

"Fired on Christmas Eve, that's just tragic." Ghira spoke.

"**Hya!" he whipped the reins as they took off, leaving a crying, unemployed and pathetic elf behind.**

**In the night sky, saint Arc looked at his digital watch, it now read 11:59:30 and counting!**

"**Holy!- Lets do this!" Jaune was still determined to get the job done in time, though he had no time to go into the houses and plant the presents in each house. So he came up with a brilliant idea!**

"How is he going to pull this off in one night?" Hazel questioned.

**Throughout the quiet planet of remnant, as its people were enwrapped in a peaceful slumber, some struggled due to the excitement that boiled within, waiting for the joyful day to come. Those awake heard the sound of whistling, not man made, but something that seemed to be falling.**

"Oh crap." A few Atlas Personnel were familiar with that dreaded sound.

**Crash! A present had had broken through the roof of a nice little home!**

"Hell yeah, I could get use to this kinda holiday!" Vernal was really into the show.

**The same happened in the streets of the city of Vale! Destroying doors, windows and solid walls!**

"How can a box do that?!" Watts demanded.

**A certain maiden who was sleeping in bed was hit with one gift, its force sending the person through her own bed and the floor beneath!**

"Was that me?!" Cinder shouted

**Jaune and his assistant had resorted to throwing the gift down to the people and home below, the strength along with momentum and height would make each present dive as fast as a bomb, with the force of either head or body sized meteors.**

**One had broken through one road in Vale and a nun who was driving a moped fell into the newly formed crater.**

"That poor lady." Summer gasped.

**A homeless man lay in the cold streets of the harsh city, no one and nowhere to go to, only being able to rely on the generosity of a few, he lived a sad, lonely life.**

**The ragged man heard a whistling sound just like others around the world, he looked up and say the famous sleigh, lit up in the moon light missing the object heading towards him.**

**His eyes lit up with a warmth he had not known for years, he wasn't alone! Someone cared! Someone remembered! Santa remembered!**

**With fiery enthusiasms he cried "Santa remembered me!" it was truly heart-warming.**

"AWW." That was nice.

"Wait, that present is heading straight for him." Neptune pointed out.

"Yeah, it's his gift." Yang replied.

"Yeah and these same presents have broken solid concrete!"

That stopped the happy cheers.

"Im sure he'll be fine." Pyrrha tried.

**Only for his head to be completely obliterated as a present zoomed into it.**

"What was that sorry?" Tyrian laughed.

…

…

…

**HEAD SHOT! (Ooooh)**

**ONE SHOT! ONE KILL! (That doesn't seem appropriate.)**

**BUZZ KILL! (Wait! What was that last one?!)**

**30 PERSON KILL STREAK! (JESUS JAUNE CALM DOWN!)**

**Jaune and his helper continued to bombard the planet below.**

**Big red box. Going over.**

**Green tube, see ya later.**

**Brightly coloured… thing? Bye! "Woah wait a minute!" huh it seemed to talk for a second. Jaune looked over to see a now empty passenger seat.**

**OH MY GOD HE THREW THE ELF! He realized.**

"No, not the elf!" Nora cried.

**If remnant had a space programme, the people would be seeing the small impacts happening across the world as Santa continued his high casualty mission.**

**Finally! The madness was over as Jaune's sleigh came to a stop at some random neighbourhood. The citizens of Remnant had suffered loss of property, people and happiness. But at least they had their damned presents. I hope you're happy Jaune!**

"**BOO-YAH!" oh, apparently he was. Jaune looked at his wrist watch "15 seconds to spare! I F***ing rule!" he declared.**

"He done that in 15 seconds?" Harriet was dumbfounded.

"**Santa Dance." Oh now he was dancing, great.**

**However as he danced around, he kicked a present that was stuck by the feet of his sleigh, he still had one more present to go!**

"**Oh no ya don't." Jaune wasn't going to let this slide. "You're not gonna f*** me, Jaune's the one doing the f***in' tonight!" and with that, he took off in a mad sprint, the present was going to a house on the block so he could make it on foot!**

**He jumped over fences in backyards.**

**Slid over the tables.**

**Dashed across gardens.**

**Passed a window to a bedroom with a naked woman readi- helloooo~. Jaune paused as he took another peak at the hourglass model before taking off again, that sight going into the mental vault.**

As did some of the male and a few female audience members.

**He used a skateboard towards a slide, launching upwards and landing on a trampoline.**

**There! He saw the house, he shot towards the front door of his target and aggressively pulled at the handle, it wouldn't budge!**

"**Why won't this damn thing open!" he demanded as he wrapped both hands around it, it kinda felt warm surprisingly, and the rattling sounded like chocked cries as well?**

"**AH ge ovv ov me! AH OH Agh!"**

**The sight changed to Jaune chocking an equally old Pyrrha in bed as he was still asleep!**

"Oh no Pyrrha!" Ruby exclaimed as everyone was shocked at the sight.

"Jaune stop." Nora grabbed Jaune, ironically chocking him as well.

**He was throttling the poor Mrs Arc as he slept. "You- ACK! You're having a dream!" she tried to get him to stop. Their bedroom door burst open as three elves rushed in, one with a Taser stick.**

**They cried for him to stop and after 6 powerful shocks, he dropped onto the cold wooden floor if his house.**

**Pyrrha, after catching her breathe, declared "I hate Christmas!" the elves gasped in shock "You heard me!" she didn't deny what she said.**

"So that's that. For now, I hope this more, light hearted one helped out for most of you." Con said.

"It certainly is a change from the grim versions." Terra admitted.

"But still filled with action!" Vernal had her priorities set, but wouldn't admit to liking this better than the previous one, too much death there, even for her.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

**Hey everyone, happy holidays and happy New Year! Sorry I haven't updated in a while and sorry this is a little late. I wanted to upload this on Christmas but computer decided to take a holiday and not work so yeah.**

**Hera is an original character made my "dragontaku-Justineverything" from a tumblr I follow, I've seen his works with Hera and her Mama Pyrrha and Papa Jaune and I just love the puggle wuggle!**

**Anyway thanks for the support and I will try to do better, none the less. See ya all.**

**MADMAN OUT!**


	5. Chapter 5

**In the cold night sky of the out skirts of the Atlas kingdom, was a military bullhead, suspended in mid-air by its own engines, a beacon sounding off from the air craft. Its air space was soon shared by another Atlas air craft.**

"What is a lone Bullhead doing so far out of Atlas jurisdiction?" James demanded as Clover and Winter narrowed their eyes.

"What's an Atlas Ship doing so far from its own kingdom Jimmy?" Qrow asked getting a scowl from Ironwood and Winter.

"Isn't that a prisoner transport?" Blake asked.

"It is most likely moving prisoners from Atlas to a different location out of the kingdom, with Vale being attacked, it's not too farfetched to assume that a detention centre was destroyed and prisoners needed to be arranged to alternate locations." Vine theorised.

**A prisoner transport air ship. It had heard the distress beacon and converged on its position.**

**A voice was heard on the radio. The captain of the prisoner transport. "There she is." the captain pointed out as the larger ship hovered close to the bullhead.**

"Ah Mayers." James nodded with a smile. "A fine soldier, too bad he was given more lenient jobs once he was promoted."

**The captain, Mayers', voice was heard again. "Unidentified Bullhead, this is Captain Mayers of the Atlas Tartarus, responding to your distress signal. Come in over." **

"A distress signal?" Nora asked.

"The vehicle doesn't look like it has been in a fight, and its engines seem fine, so why would it be signalling for assistance?" Ren questioned.

"Someone injured maybe." Ruby guessed.

"For a bullhead holding an injured person, it doesn't seem to be in a hurry to find a hospital." Jaune argued.

**The only reply was static from the Bullhead, not a voice to be heard. Meaning either the pilot was dumb, mute or dead, Mayers tried again.**

"**Unidentified Bullhead, please respond." He requested. Mayers could see the ship from the bridge of the Tartarus, from the duration of the distress signal, that bullhead must have been hovering in one spot for a while now. Meaning its fuel will be running out soon and needed to respond or just drop like a rock, the strange part was that the pilot or anyone for that matter didn't seem to be in a hurry to land the aircraft in the Tartarus' bay for refuelling.**

"**Eh… comms are acting kind of funny. Maybe they can't hear us?" the main pilot of the Tartarus guessed. He looked back at his captain for further orders.**

**A nearby soldier watching a news broadcast didn't seem too interested in the event happening as he was laying back on his seat with his feet up on the desk and hands behind his head, though he did throw in his two cents. "Or maybe they fell asleep at the wheel." **

"I hate soldiers that don't even do their job, what was the point in joining a military if you're going to lay around doing nothing." Winter hated laziness.

"Not everyone stands at attention over the smallest thing like you do ice queen." Qrow got a glare in response.

**Mayers sighed as he turned back to his console and tried again. "Bullhead, can you just give us a sign that you're reading this?" he didn't have time for this, if need be, he could just report this in and hope someone picks them up, though that would require a lot more paper work compared to letting the bullhead dock.**

**Suddenly, the Bullhead's lights flicked on, perhaps this was their sign. It was good enough for the Captain.**

"**Oh hey, she lives!" the main pilot pointed out.**

"**Bullhead, are you able to make your way to our starboard docking bay? We'll be able to assist you from there." Mayers enquired.**

**Once more, a single flick of their head lights was the answer.**

"**Well, there you go." That was good enough.**

**Deciding that the other soldier had sat on his ass long enough, Mayers gave him his orders. "Stassney, meet up with Blanton and Kilgore in docking. Let's see what this is all about."**

"Wait, what if that light means something bad instead!" Sun argued, Neptune shook his head.

"Dude, you watch way too much sci-fi and horror films."

**Stassney had objections to this. "Wait, how the hell do you know that meant "yes"?" he spun his chair to face his commanding officer as he continued his case. "What if two flashes means "yes", and one flash means "Stay away, zombies aboard"?" he ridiculously theorised."**

"See." Sun gestured as Blake face palmed while Ghira looked at his wife with an unamused look.

"Oh stop you." She smacked his arm.

**The captain turned his unimpressed glare away from the private as he heard the Bullheads engines increase its forward thrust and leave the sight from the bridge windows. **

"**You were saying?" he smirked.**

"**Fine. Signal sucks out here anyway."**

**As he left, the broadcast he was invested in was still going on, showing Jacques Schnee on the screen as he spoke on a podium towards an off screen audience, most likely reporters. Under him was a news title that read: 'Jacques for councilman.' "…And we should all prepare ourselves for whatever may come next." **

"THAT SCUMBAG FOR COUNCIL MAN!?" Adam shouted, making a few jump as the volume whilst Velvet and Blake winced, the former for her sensitive ears and Blake for a different reason, Yang held her hand, surprising the cat girl before she smiled.

The man in question just smirked at this, he had been running for quite some time. He was already a powerful figure across the world with the Schnee Dust Company but to be a councilman would add to his power and hold over others, maybe even put dear Ironwood in his place.

**Stassney made his way towards the docking bay per his orders, meaning he had to go past the prison cell bay. Yippee.**

**As he made his way, he was heckled by jeers and sneers and taunts from the unkempt prisoners.**

"**Hey Stassney!" one would yell.**

"**Hey Stassney, why we stoppin'?"**

**Another continued "Let me guess, you're lettin' us go?" both laughed as they continued to bang on the cell bars, Stassney gave no reaction to the banging as he marched on.**

"**Quiet down, we're just pickin' up what I hope are hitch-hiking cheerleaders." He ordered before he muttered an answer.**

"Pretty sure cheerleaders are still in high school or college." Taiyang pointed out, making the audience look at Stassney in disgust.

"**In your dreams asshole!" another loudmouth inmate pulled him from his fantasy as he let out a laugh.**

**Stassney walked by a particular cell that had more of a metal wall than metal bars, only having a little viewing window made of small bars to keep an eye on the special prisoner. His red hair and black horns indicating to who it was. He made no move nor did no noises unlike his fellow convicts, head still hang in the darkness of his temporary cell. **

Blake looked interested at this and Yang looked hopeful while a certain someone…

"WHAT!?" Adam once again demanded.

"You're a terrorist, why're you so shocked at this?" Mercury said in a bored tone.

Adam snarled at the smug assassin "I am not some mere terrorist, I fight for my people's freedom from the oppressive human kind!"

"And does that involve killing your own kind when they refuse your rule?" Sienna glared along with Ghira, the attack on his home and family fresh on his mind.

Adam merely snarled like a rabid animal some more before he caught Con's calm form yet terrifying presence and sat back down.

**Stassney finally made it to his destination as Blanton was getting impatient, "Come on, Stass. Hurry up!"**

**Kilgore didn't like the situation. "It's just weird seeing a military bird out here, I don't like this."**

**Stassney laughed at the paranoia. "Ooh, maybe it's some top-secret covert ops, some hush-hush "you never saw us" type shit?" he nudged Blanton's shoulder jokingly.**

The Ace Ops shared a look but didn't comment, they weren't exactly how the soldier described them, but at the same time, had more covert operations compared to other teams or units. Plus this was an alternate version of their world.

"**Yeah and if we're lucky they'll kill you to keep this quiet."**

**Kilgore had enough of this. "Hey! We got a deadline to meet, all right? Ready up." Kilgore and Blanton readied their weapons and aimed towards the Bullheads door as Stassney got out a flash light. **

"**Bullhead crew! You may now open your bay door and slowly exit the vehicle." Kilgore ordered.**

**The view changed black before the sounding of mechanisms moving and a hissing sound was made, the black screen was soon filling up with the view of the bay door of the Bullhead opening from the inside. **

**Stassney pointing his light at a lone figure standing in armour that had little lights on the back of the figures head, shoulder blades and back. From his bulky form, the person was wearing armour and a helmet. He raised his hands in the air in compliance. "Yes sir." The man said in a calm voice, soothing over the tension between the four of them. The quantity of the crew was what confused the three soldiers before the figure.**

"**It's… just one guy?" this was an irregularity, no Bullhead was ever used for just one man, it would be a waste of resources unless it had just came back from a failed mission or scouting, the strangers calm attitude didn't portray a mission gone bad or someone running away and using a unauthorised or stolen military vehicle. Unless he was trying to play it cool, this guy acted like everything was fine and dandy, not something someone who had issued a distress beacon would do.**

"Most strange." Glynda murmured.

"What is going on here?" Ironwood didn't like such strange behaviour.

**The stranger gave a chuckle a Stassney's observation. "Won't find anyone else on this ship." He declared.**

"Guys? Is that…?" Oscar wasn't sure on his assumption.

"Let's not jump to conclusions yet." Pyrrha spoke.

**Kilgore wanted to get this over with. "Come one out. Take it slow." He ordered, weapon still pointing at the armoured man.**

**He complied one more as he descended the ramp towards the three crew men. He even popped off his helmet as a sign of peace. The view was obscured by the back of Stassney.**

"**You all right?" he asked the anonymous man when he got closer. Stassney finally moved out the way so now the audience could see a familiar blond.**

"Yep, it's me." Jaune would know that face anywhere.

"Really? What proof do you have?" Mercury rhetorically asked. Getting a deadpanned look back.

"Nice armour." Coco was impressed and everyone looked back at the screen to see for themselves.

**His armour was a white steel colour with dark golden trims all over. His helmet**** features a cap-like protrusion, along its rim and a beak-like protrusion under the chin. With a thin, slit-shaped visor **

**His upper armour was wrapped around his chest and torso like a bulky vest, the chest of the armour protruding out slightly, indicating that it was more reinforced to protect the vital organs.**

**His shoulders were more exposed with its armour plate hanging more so on the upper arm of the user, wrapped around his bicep, though this did give his arms more freedom of movement, meaning it was designed for hand to hand combat compared to gun fights. **

**His forearms were covered in twin plated armour that hat little glowing lights across the limbs.**

**His legs were fitted with narrow slat, 3 piece set, covering the thighs, knee pads and shins, none of which over lay the other in order to allow the legs to move more freely.**

**His hands seemed to have padding across the fingers and a single plate on the back of his hands.**

**Parts of the body that were without armour was clad in a skin tight, full, black body suit.**

"Going for more space ranger than Knight are we Arc? Gotta say it's sexy." Coco teased the now blushing Arc.

"Coco!" Velvet scolded.

"Oh like you weren't eyeing him like a fresh carrot." This made the Faunus blush like crazy as well.

**With his helmet off, we could see his smirking, easy going face, his hair no longer the same mop of hair, but instead, cut short with a new spiky style.**

Nora focused on the new trim. "Nice hair fearless leader."

"At least it won't get in my eyes." Jaunes face was then turned towards Pyrrha by the champion herself making him blush slightly from her intense look in her beautiful emerald eyes, she looked at his hair, then the screen, back to Jaune.

Jaune

Screen

Jaune

Screen

Jaune,

"Uh Pyrrha?" he asked

Pyrrha then realised what exactly she was doing and that everyone was looking at them. "Oh im sorry, im just comparing the hair styles."

"You don't like it?" Jaune asked, now thinking on keeping his hair the same as it was.

"Well no im… just not use to it exactly." She confessed.

"I like it." Ruby being supportive as always.

"It certainly does have a more professional look compared to his usual scruffy one." Weiss agreed.

"Nah, im not feeling it." Yang denied.

"You only say that because you hate the thought of cutting your hair." Blake pointed out to her partner, who didn't deny the accusation.

"Short hair is good for combat." Winter voiced with Glynda nodding.

"Less to be grabbed." Raven added getting a look from her former team. "What?" she demanded.

Tai seemed hesitant, "Well…"

"This coming from someone with long hair?" Qrow spoke for Tai.

"That's assuming my enemies get the chance to grab my – OW!" Raven snapped her head towards a grinning Summer who grabbed her hair.

Yang laughed at this getting a glare from Vernal and a softer one from Raven.

"**Yeah, I'm just glad you found me." He assured as he dropped his arms to his sides casually.**

**Stassney didn't like the casual manor so much. "This guy don't sit right with me." He 'whispered' to his fellow soldier, both keeping weary eyes on the blond.**

**The screen cut to the Tartarus Bridge as Jaune and the soldier were suddenly laughing like hyenas. Kilgore clutching his stomach as he could barely stand, staggering back in uncontrollable guffawing.**

"**This guy's my fuckin' hero!" Stassney declared as held onto Jaune shoulder for balance as he lightly smacked the chest plate.**

""This guy don't sit right with me" my ass." Qrow snorted.

"**Oh come on, you tell me that every single one of you wouldn't have done the same thing!" Jaune laughed along as he pointed to each crew men in the bridge before waving his arm softly.**

"**I mean, come on, am I right?" he asked with humour before letting out another chuckle.**

**Mayers leaned back on one of the computer consoles at the side as he joined in on the hilarious tale. "That was a hell of a story son, but it's time we got you fixed up and went on our way. Lord knows we've wasted enough of Atlas's time." He conceded.**

"Wait, are we not gonna hear the story?" Emerald asked.

"Why so interested?" Cinder raised an eyebrow, she didn't get a reply.

"**Well, hey… are you hourly?" Jaune joked once more, getting another round of laughter.**

**Blanton being the loudest, "Now that's what I'm talking about!"**

"**Seriously though, this ship looks like a fucking antique. Higher ups couldn't spare the extra lien to fix her up?" Jaune gestured as he wandered around.**

"Jaune!" Saphron shouted.

"What?!"

"No swearing!" she scolded.

"Really?" he asked.

Yang decided to mess around. "Yeah Jaune. Watch your language."

Jaune turned to his blonde from another mother "Wha-?"

"Yes Jaune." He turned to a disappointed looking Ren and a nodding Nora. "What kind of lesson are you teaching your nephew?"

"For shame Fearless leader, if anything, that's a bad thing for a leader to do."

"Oh come one, Pyrrha back me up here."

Pyrrha looked him dead in the eyes with a neutral look. "That's not the attitude that drew me to you Jaune." She shook her head.

"The fu-?"

"Jaune, language!" Blake laughed along.

"We just saw a world where I swore like a sailor whilst bombing Remnant with goodies."

"Yes but that was more of a parody world." Weiss explained as if to a child.

"I don't even know you anymore." Ruby 'cried' into her mother's arms as said mother mock glared "You monster." She comforted Ruby after.

"Oh for…" team RWBY and NPR laughed at the joke while CV snorted along with them and SN mock 'tst'.

"**Yeah right." The Atlas soldier snorted.**

**Mayers pushed himself off the desk as he explained "Prison transport ain't very high on the budgetary priorities." He stopped at the main consoles as he looked out the window into the night sky. Jaune standing behind him. "No use wasting money on law breakers or terrorists."**

**Jaune nodded. "Yeah, saw quite the diverse catch you have, though anymore Faunus and the world would start thinking Atlas really does hate those furry bastards." Jaune looked out the corner of his eye as he looked at Stassney.**

"Excuse me." Illa seethed at the remark.

"Actually if you pay attention, I don't think he meant it." Marrow observed.

Adam was disgusted "You defend a human over your own kind? Atlas certainly has made you a lap dog."

"Uh actually dumbass, look at how… john?" Marrow looked at the blond.

"Jaune."

"Jaune, thanks, if you look at how he eyes Stassney, he's checking for a reaction, I guess he figured that that guy is a closet racist, and wants to seem more like he's on their side, Stassney would be less attentive to what Jaune does that could be shady, in terms of attitude or thoughts." The Faunus defended the Hunter in training.

"Good observation Amin." Ironwood praised. Marrow looked proud before the wind was knocked out of him by elm."

"Ha! Guess you do have a brain in that head of yours." He pouted at that.

"**Well, the boys in charge threw together a skeleton crew to make sure the cargo just makes it alive. Ever since Beacon fell, Vale had more criminals running around and some left over White Fang supporters from the attack, with the Vale prison being destroyed, we had to take these scum bags over to Atlas, but with the vale prison centre being rebuilt, well they're going 'home'. So to speak."**

"**Damn, kinda a mess ain't it." Jaune said.**

"**Well, it's nothing we can't handle." The Captain spoke with confidence. "Also, the criminals know to not cause a ruckus."**

"**Oh yeah, how so?" Jaune was now curious.**

"**Well, we let them know that if they get to noisy, it's the Grimm that'll come knocking with a noise complaint."**

"**So it's either be good prisoners or be Grimm food? Nice."**

"Okay that was kinda… grim." Yang said uncertainly.

"Argh!" Yang was shocked by the groans "What!?" she asked.

"Do you really have to make a pun now?" Weiss asked, Yang's eyes went wide as she realised the unintentional pun.

"Bu- but I didn't mean it that time!" she tried to defend herself.

"Uh huh." Ruby didn't believe her for a second.

"No really, I didn't!"

"Yang." Blake groaned out with her head hung low.

"Honest!" it was pointless Yang.

"**Yeah, we got guns and the purge if they try their luck anyway, better kicking them out than letting the Grimm chomp us. Real killer is the fuckin' boredom." Stassney voiced his thoughts.**

**Jaune shook his head in disbelief. "What about all the disappearances all over the news? And didn't the White Fang get some Atlas Armour, wouldn't they try to get their fellow killers and even a ship to boot?"**

Ironwood clenched his fist at the memory of his own forces and armour being used on citizens and allies, it was his fault for not doing more to ensure everything was safe and secure. Ozpin noticed this.

"James my friend, the attack wasn't your fault, we were tricked and deceived, it would only be our fault if we knew what was going on and turned a blind eye and the fault is mine for being too arrogant in our defences."

"Ozpin, my fear led to bringing my forces to Vale, just what they wanted. I let them play me and my fears."

"James." Glynda rested a hand on his arm in comfort. "You were doing what anyone in your position would do, you feared you allies being out numbered and overrun and offered your help. I've read of generals who've abandoned their own forces must less help others." James gave a weak smile at this but still felt down.

**Mayers wasn't too concerned. "Well, we haven't heard anything about the Fang getting anything bigger than Bullheads and we can just drop the cargo, thus making their mission futile, they'd be wasting fuel, ammo, dust and men just for a prison transport."**

**Stassney let out his prejudices leak out. "Yeah but those freaks probably have the brains of animals as well."**

This got scowls from all the Faunus and those supporting Faunus.

"Would rather an animal brain than no brain asshole." Yang growled.

**Kilgore let out a suffering sigh. "Not this again." He face palmed.**

**Stassney didn't stop however. "Yeah that queen Faunus bitch says it was a rogue faction but you know them leg humpin' bastards would claw out your throat the second they could." Jaune was correct in his observation, Stassney seemed to hate Faunus in general, yet hid it with the White Fang.**

"He was correct in assuming this fools stance on other races." Cinder muttered.

**Blanton interjected. "Hey, that's intolerant!"**

"**You're intolerant!" was the childish rebuttal.**

**Mayers decided to end this before it began. "Quiet!" he ordered in a no nonsense tone. Ironically Stassney obeyed like a dog more than a dog Faunus could.**

"**Truth be told, no one gives a rat's ass about the people on this ship, or not enough to risk their ass for them." Mayers crossed his arms at this.**

"**If anybody out there really wanted 'em, they could have 'em." And like that, he unknowingly sealed his and his crew's fate.**

**The soldiers laughed at this, also finding it ridiculous that anybody would want these scum bags and agreeing that they'd give them up without a fuss.**

**They all laughed.**

**All of them.**

**Except.**

**For Jaune. He looked at his helmet before he fixed it back on his head.**

Clover tensed at this along with the veteran Hunters.

"**Alright." His voice now filtered through the helmet, though it seemed cold. And dangerous. Like a warning that no one really paid attention to.**

"**I'll take them." Jaune 'offered' as he faced the Captain.**

This got Cinder's attention, the sudden change in atmosphere intrigued her. She's seen the good heart Saiyan, the powerful wizard and the crass Santa but none that can be identified as 'evil'. Cinder scoffed at the notion of good and evil. That was a notion for another time but for now, let's see what a more… likewise Arc was.

**This stopped the laughter.**

**Mayers broke the silence. "What, er… whaddoya' mean?" he asked uncertainly. This was a huge 180 to the guy they picked up, literally minutes ago they were all just having a laugh and joking around.**

"**I mean, I'm going to kill you and take your prisoners." The deadly seriousness, the icy tone and the sharp edge to his words sent a chill down everyone's spine. It was like they could see past the black visor and see the frosty glare behind it, filled with murderous intention.**

"…"

"…"

"…"

"Wha…"

Watts heard the sound of crunching in a rapid pace and looked to his side, seeing Tyrian munching on a bag of popcorn "Really?" he asked.

"Yeah, no butter with it." Tyrian continued to eat none the less.

Watts put on a deadpanned look before he turned back to the screen.

**The soldiers shared uneasy looks whilst the Captain stayed straight into the visor of their guest, body tense and arms at his sides, he didn't make a move to his sidearm, at least no obvious gestures. Though Jaune could see it in the narrowed eyes of Mayers, he was going to make the move first, he was just pushing himself to do it first.**

**A death stare was shared between the two whilst the soldiers could only look on clueless.**

***Ba Dum***

***Ba Dum***

***Ba Dum* **

**Mayers' hand shot towards his sidearm in a flash! As he aimed it at the white and gold threat, it was kicked out from his hand by Jaune, the gun being kicked into Stassney's face.**

"Holy Shit!" Neptune jerked in surprise along with a few others.

**Mayers raised his arms in a basic stance but Jaune broke through his defence with a hard right and followed with a quick left to the jaw.**

**Mayers righted himself before Jaune gave a strong jab to his nose, stunning the older man and making him stumble back.**

**Jaune knew that the other idiots would figure out what was happening right about now. Using this opening, he turned to Stassney and kicked him right between the legs, immobilizing the private in a pitiful state.**

The men collectively crossed the legs at that, some going "Ooooooh" at the sight.

**Mayers, still staggering, moved towards Jaune, who didn't even turn to face him but instead, held his head and dropped down, dragging the old man's head down and colliding with his shoulder. He dropped to the floor, out of the fight.**

**Jaune looked at the kneeling form of Stassney before performing a 360 spinning jump kick to the face. Not acknowledging the "Wait!" that was cried before impact. Stassney now joined his Captain on the floor. **

**Kilgore raised his hands in a basic boxing stance behind Jaune, instead of using Jaune's blindside to his advantage, turned Jaune to face him. **

"Fool had a chance to get a shot in and didn't." Raven shook her head at the idiocy.

"**C'mere!" he threw a left which was grabbed before he threw a right in retaliation, the opposing limb was also caught.**

**Jaune head-butted his new opponent and done another spin kick, this one lower to the ground, swiping out Kilgore's leg from underneath him.**

**Instead of falling, he was sent spiralling in the air with a shocked yelp. He foot had collided with Blanton's head, dazing his friend.**

**Kilgore landed on his feet. "Shit, sorry!" he apologized, he turned back to Jaune and sent another right hook, his form was way to open, legs too wide and torso exposed.**

**Jaune blocked the strike before he latched onto the arm and twisted Kilgore around, getting a sickening crunch from the limb.**

**Jaune used Kilgore as a human shield as Blanton tried to punch the Blond bastard, only to hit his trapped friend.**

**Blanton tried again, only to once again hit Kilgore. Jaune threw his human shield aside who was also knocked out.**

**Stassney had come through and scuttled to the Captain's handgun that was forgotten on the ground. "Come on. Come on!"**

**Jaune crouched to avoid another swing but the sound of a gunshot and the suddenly stilled form of Blanton stopped the fight. Blanton then crumbled to the ground, helmet broken with blood gushing through the opening.**

This got some gasps, especially from the civilians in the crowd, having not seen such a sight. Saph and Terra huddled together with their baby in between their warmth. Thankfully he wasn't watching it. Kali held her husband, she had shot a gun at White Fang when they tried to destroy her home and kill her family but it was only non-fatal wounds.

**Jaune looked back at the bastard that tried to shoot him.**

**Stassney stood there, gun pointed with smoke leaving the barrel as he whimpered "Uh oh." Momentarily stunned at the notion that he killed his friend.**

**Jaune audibly growled as he slid under the idiot, and throwing him onto hit back. The downed soldier emitting a pathetic sound of defeat. **

**Jaune stood back up and suddenly took out a knife before turning, jumping in the air and throwing the knife into the head of the just now altered pilot.**

**The poor guy didn't even have a chance to ask what was going on before the cold steel pierced his helmet and skull then brain.**

**He too crumbled, dead.**

"**Bull's eye." Jaune smirked in pride at that.**

"Indeed." Cinder was impressed by the accuracy whilst Tyrian was impressed by the kill itself.

**Unknown to Jaune, Mayers had regained conciseness and reached for the computer console, slamming down on the security alarm button.**

"Rookie mistake." Mercury was disappointed by that.

"Pretty sure his version could kick your ass." Emerald jeered.

"Oh please." He scoffed at the thought.

**All around the ship, the lights turned blood red as the alarm sounded off. Getting everyone aboard to cry out in confusing and alert.**

**A soldier stationed at the Bullhead in the docking bay looked around, not understanding what was happening. **

**Before he could register the alarm, his neck was violently snapped. Another figure blinked into existence behind him, those blinking would have missed it.**

"What happened?" Terra asked though she didn't really want an answer.

**As the now dead soldier fell, the figure remerged from fin air, as if he was there the whole time, waiting to strike.**

"Impressive camouflage." Watts took a note at the technology, wondering if it was possible to recreate it.

**He too wore armour, though its design was different, its build was similar. The most notable difference was the colour scheme, which, despite being drowned out in the red lights, was black and green. **

**Another difference was the helmet. A more intimidating design compared to Jaune's.**

**Its upper half had a smooth surface before it started to look more skull like at the nose and jaw.**

**Within seconds, more and more armoured men turned off their camouflage, showing that Jaune had brought company.**

"**No survivors." The leading mercenary commanded in a voice that terrified some of the audience.**

If it wasn't the helmet, it was the voice that made the weaker willed fear him whilst those stronger were more so weary of him.

**Back at the bridge, two Atlas soldiers stormed the floor, guns cocked and ready to fire. "Captain Mayers!" one shouted at the sight before him.**

**Mayers staggered around on his feet as Jaune's voice sounded off. "At ease gentlemen." Mayers was then pushed forward by the white and gold mercenary, who was moving Mayers like a puppet as he acted as a shield. Jaune then fired two quick shots at the soldiers. Getting two clean head shots before they could fire back.**

**Stassney was still on the cold ground as he saw more of his fellow soldiers die at the hands of this murderer. **

"Huh, he's still alive." Tyrian said.

"Of course he is, this version of Arc was just playing with his opponents." Cinder concluded.

**His shaking hands reached for one of the dropped rifles but stopped when he heard.**

"**Calm down, Stassney." Jaune said as he held his knife on hand and leaned on the console casually, just as Mayers did minutes ago did, before all this madness.**

"**Im not gonna kill you." Jaune assured the terrified man. His voice soft and kind like before.**

"**Y- y- you're not?" Stassney asked hopefully.**

"**Nope." Jaune answered as he twirled his knife around, the sound of the bridge door opening once more caught both their attention.**

"**He is." Jaune pointed his knife at his partner.**

**Stassney gapped at the towering figure who silently stared down at him then wordlessly pointed his shotgun at Stassney's face. **

**His final words were. "Oh so on a bitch." Followed by a gun shot.**

Silence, silence at the heartless act, the lack of mercy scaring the few that weren't use to it.

**The screen changed to Jaune and his partner walking down the cell block as their troopers sounded off on their comm links.**

"**Sector 1. Clear."**

"**Sector 2. Clear."**

"**Sector 3. Clear."**

**The black and green mercenary grabbed what looked like a walkie talkie. "Quiet." His dark voice cut through the shouting and jeering prisoners like a hot knife through butter.**

"**As of this moment, we are the new crew of this ship." His curt explanation didn't sit well with some. After a few seconds a random inmate shouted "Well who the hell are you!?"**

**Jaune decided to take over as he patted Locus on the shoulder and took the device from him. "Let's let the people person handle this, okay?"**

**Locus didn't object so he continued. "Listen up! We're looking for soldiers who aren't afraid of killing lots of people for lots of money. And we don't care who you are and we don't care what you've done, because quite frankly, we've probably done a hell of a lot worse…"**

"What, does he mean by that?" Ruby hesitated to ask and was glad nobody actually answered her, just a hand squeeze from her faithful partner.

"…**All we want are men who can follow orders and hold their own on the battlefield. We're going to war folks!" Jaune announced to his captive audience, most being intrigued by the new development while some were being stubborn and stupid.**

"**Our target? The Atlas military."**

"WHAT!?" Those from Atlas shot up from this declaration of war, James being the one to let out the cry of outrage as his robotic hand nearly reduced his arm rest to dust. Watts, Tyrian, Cinder and Salem were interested at the Arc's movement against the powerful military force, seeing as said kingdom was their next target after Haven.

Raven was also intrigued at this, she was constantly on the move to avoid the might of Atlas, and here this bo- this _Man_ was, ready to fight said power with only criminals, not unlike her tribe, though she believed they had more than her entire camp but still.

Teams RWBY and NPR, despite horrified by what this alternate Jaune was planning, were wondering how he could do it. Yes, while Jaune lacked the skills of a fighter, he had the mind of a tactical genius, which has only improved over time, and this Jaune was much older meaning he could very well be a threat to Atlas.

Jaune was deep in thought as he watched his counter-part's speech. '_I doubt I'm- _He's_ truly attempting to over throw Atlas, hell assemble an army of crooks twice as big as Atlas, you'd still lose in terms of experience, discipline and loyalty, money could only force a criminal to follow into battle so far before they realise they need to be alive to spend that money._'

His brows narrowed as he continued to try and dissect hi- _THIS JAUNE'S PLAN! _'_So if not the Atlas military, then what or who? Could he be in league with Salem!? No, no matter how insane this me is, I doubt he'd actually work with someone that would push for the extinction of humanity, so maybe one of her lap dogs approached him, Tyrian would be too crazy, and I doubt even this Jaune would bow down to that bastard. Hazel? Possibly though I don't really know much about him and he seems to be an enforcer like Tyrian. That leaves either Watts or Cinder.'_

'_Just like Hazel, I don't know much about him though he's not built like a fighter, more like a person to operate in the shadows… was he the one responsible for the Atlas drones attacking Beacon, we know they were hacked and I doubt Emerald or Mercury would have the knowledge to pull such a feat. So he's good with computers, it's either information I wanted or blackmail, that or he also has a silver tongue.'_

'_That leaves Fall… she managed to get Roman and Adam to work for her, one most likely only needed the promise of money and the other a promise of pain against Humans, but what could she have promised me?'_ Jaune briefly looked over at the false maiden and nearly cursed out loud when he met her eyes. Was she watching him? Damnit! He didn't need to look at her, he could already feel the smirk on her face.

Said girl eyed the form of Jaune as he looked away. '_Just what's going through your mind Arc? Trying to figure out why you stopped being some goodie two shoes? Do you believe im the reason for this act?' _her smile grey more at this.

Back to Jaune he decided to get his mind of who hired him for this. '_Don't think of her, she'll get in your head by that. Back to what im targeting at Atlas. From what I know, each school apparently has something Salem wants, and someone across Remnant has the power to gain access to that something. I wouldn't be surprised if Ironwood is keeping tabs on the Maiden… or maybe… he has the Maiden! And just like with the White fang, I'm to gather an army to not fight Atlas, but get their attention! So someone could slip inside and get to the Maiden, that or information Salem would desire.' _Jaune concluded. Then, Jaune felt it… a sinking feeling of despair and dread, much like he first felt when he came face to face with Grimm, a sense of hopelessness and death but multiplied and the only one who could replicate that would be…

Every part of his soul was telling him not to do it, to not look back at her, to just continue thinking to himself and fight the urge but he lost and looked to the source.

When his eyes met _hers_ it was like he was staring at a bottomless abyss of blood and sin. Her crimson irises clashing with his ocean Blue.

The trepidation that ate at his heart intensified tenfold but he couldn't tear his gaze away. The strange thing was, he could only see her eyes, it was like the rest of her face, hell, the rest of everything just washed away as he kept looking.

It wasn't like Cinder's. Her eyes burned like a fire, but fire could burn itself out. With the dark… it was always there, it was there when you were a child, when you were growing up and when you died. The only way to stop the darkness was with the light, but they were losing those lights.

Despite the fear, despite the dread, Jaune could only do one thing. He glared at the darkness. He looked back in defiance to which she quirked an eyebrow at but looked away first.

Jaune should have counted that a victory, but he couldn't find it in his heart to do so, not when he felt that much terror in the short time they had any form of interaction, her smirk didn't help either.

"**Now our enemies are weak, but there's a lot of them. And they've got a couple of badass Hunters on their side. But if you survive, you'll be rich enough to live out the rest of your lives as free men."**

"**Wouldn't you like that, to destroy the same people that look down on you? To show them that they don't control you. To the Faunus here, wouldn't you like the chance to free your own people and break the shackles that hold you down? To truly show your claws, your fangs, your inner animal that you've all supressed?"**

**His speech started to spark the fire in those that felt wronged by Atlas.**

**The prisoners started to murmur and talk between each other at this offer, kill a couple a weaklings for some money? Hell yeah!**

**That was the thought of most the inmates, though some thought on the rest of the speech, fight hunters "If you survive"? Not too encouraging, and they were just crooks, not hitmen or mercenaries. These punks could find someone else.**

"**Now, if this totally awesome idea doesn't sound like your kind of job, we'll just let you off the ship. But if you're ready to fight for your freedom, then please…"**

**Jaune then clenched his hand and raised it into the air "…Firmly grasp the bars of your cell in a sign of solidarity."**

**Seconds passed in silence before the sound of flesh wrapped around steel, cold bars. **

**Some didn't want to fight.**

**Some didn't want to struggle.**

**Some didn't want to die.**

**So they didn't grasp the bars like most of their fellow criminals did.**

"**Well, all right then." Jaune said away from the microphone. **

**Without warning, the walls behind the prisoners shot open as the strong winds pulled at the people inside! The sudden change in air pressure tugged at the people holding onto dear life whilst those that didn't were effortlessly sucked out, even a few that held the bars weren't strong enough and succumbed to the merciless winds, their screams being drowned out by the harsh winds as they plummeted down to the earth below.**

**Jaune and Locus weren't affected by this as they activated their boots, locking them in place, only holding onto the railings in front of them to keep themselves balanced.**

**After a few seconds, Jaune hit the 'PURGE' button a second time, now sealing the walls of the ship as air pressure restored to normal gradually. Those still holding on dropped to the floor, a few refusing to let go of the bars in shock and fear.**

"**Congratulations." Locus' voice echoed. "You're hired." He and Jaune then headed back to the bridge.**

Not a word was uttered, not sound was made, it was like no one was even breathing at this point. A pin could be dropped on a stack of cotton and would echo throughout the theatre.

Those close to Jaune could never imagine the loveable goof-ball could pull such an act and act like it was another Monday.

James was worried, he knew of the famous warrior Heritage Jaune came from and when he heard that Ozpin got his hands on one, he had asked about him right away. James wasn't to impressed by the fighting quality of the boy but he knew there had to be more and Ozpin, like always, provided that extra bit of information once he had James' curiosity. From what Ozpin told him, the Arc had a mind to rival the general's top tacticians and possibly win.

Ozpin felt the same, he knew that if Salem were to find out Mr. Arc's talents, she'd want to sink her claws into him. At Beacon, the leaders of each team would take classes that the rest of their teams were excluded from. These lessons would test and strengthen their minds and roles of leadership. Every so often, Ozpin would surprise the class by offering tactical games against him.

It was to see what they could do and what roles their teams and skills were best suited for, whether it be full on assault or more cunning plans and Ozpin would use the same tactic against every player. When Jaune went up against him, he could her the jeers and mock from his students (except for Miss Rose) towards the knight but those turned into shocked gasps when Jaune had beaten him. No small feat might he add. Ozpin picked another game and a different tactic, and had lost once more, this continued until Ozpin ran out of games to try on the Arc and Jaune had won nearly all of them.

Salem had a new assignment for Cinder, to get Jaune Arc to work for her and whether it be through money, flesh or blood, he would be hers to command.

Unbeknownst to the Grimm Queen, Cinder had already planned to get Arc but not for mutual goals. It was to see if Arc could plan a way to over throw her master and gain even more power, she need only him by her side to do it.


	6. Chapter 6

**CHAPTER 1**

**Cinder Fall was a monster.**

"An apt description." Jaune snorted

**She knew this. She'd lied, cheated and stole for her entire life.**

Cinder tsked silently as she remembered her life on the streets and even before then, her home life. She had made a promise, she would never let herself be treated like before, she will not fears others. No, they would fear _her!_

**Oh, and killed. It turned out that she had a particular talent for that last one.**

"If I had any respect for little Cinder, it would be for that." Tyrian gave a backhanded compliment.

**She'd killed for money, for power, for revenge, for respect,**

Roman could give credit for Cinder there, hell, he was the same. Though he still pulled it off with better grace and finesse.

**She'd killed because she'd been told to, she'd killed because she wanted to. She'd become so proficient at in fact, that she drew attention of a very exclusive group, one that was, shockingly, even more dangerous than she was.**

Salem and her inner circle knew she meant them. Hazel nor Salem gave nothing away whilst Watts hmph'd with a smile and Tyrian followed with a laugh.

**They'd promised her power, and power meant not having to ever go back to being a scared little girl on the streets. She hadn't been able to sell her soul fast enough.**

The god of Light silently shook his head, Humanity was given a second chance and here they are, wasting it for their own gains and power.

Funny that he ignored the girls suffering in favour of condemning her desperation. Like many gods do.

**Cinder Fall was a monster, it was known far and wide. Only one person didn't have any clue of what Cinder Fall truly was, and she'd kill to keep it that way.**

"Oh, boss lady has a crutch?" Roman snickered as Cinder was confused.

'_What? Wait this is an alternate world, I have no such weakness, but it's still a shame that some other me could allow such a thing.' _

**Her hand found the handle to the front door of her home. A simple, yet stylish, one floor ranch home in the suburbs of Vale, complete with a small yard and meticulously cared for flower bed. She pushed through the entrance to her home and transformed.**

**"Honey, I'm home!"**

Some of the older audience chuckled at the cliché soap opera line while Mercury and Emerald were shocked at the sudden change, it was just so unlike her.

Cinder wasn't so shocked, she knew she'd have to act different if she were to pull off such an act.

"Cinder has a boyfriend?" Yang asked perplexed.

"Or a husband." Weiss added.

"Either way I feel sorry for that guy." Yang chuckled.

Cinder over heard this. "Oh dear, the bimbo seems to forget what I can offer." Cinder gestured to herself. "Compared to yourself."

"Hey if my injury makes me chopped liver, does that mean you're burnt liver?"

Cinder had a tick at that but pulled herself together. "Yet my damaged self is still more appealing than some street whore you seem to be." Electricity was practically shooting from both their eyes at each other. Until Con' gave a small burst of his power to make them settled down.

Salem turned to her underling and thought to herself. _'Hopefully her love doesn't decide something is more important than her.'_ She sent a look at Ozpin at this.

"So who do you think it is?" Ruby asked her team and friends.

Jaune looked at the screen before a look of dread passed his face. "No." he muttered as he dragged the word out.

His friends manged to hear him. "What is it Jaune?" Pyrrha asked in concern.

**"Cindy? I'm in the kitchen!" Came a familiar voice, one that sounded like home.**

Now all the audience looked with shocked eyes.

Those from Beacon and Cinder's group jaws to the floor and eye brows to the ceiling at the revelation.

"What the…?" Mercury started.

"FUCK!?" Emerald finished.

RWBY looked as though they had walked in on their parents having a threesome with each other's partners.

Jaune raised his voice to speaking volume. "No, no, no!" he was ready to find his sword and end it.

Nora pinched herself to see if it wasn't some dream or nightmare in this case. Ren offered his arm to Nora and, without looking at him, pinched him as well. Both having yet to pick up their jaws.

Pyrrha was damn near having a heart attack.

If Cinder though the first viewing was bad then this was horrifying.

**She weaved her way through the living room and walked into the kitchen, a smile coming to her face as she saw him. Clad in a 'kiss the cook' apron and cutting up chicken by the sink, with his ridiculous mop of blond hair and deep blue eyes, and that dumb smile on his face, the one that was reserved for her.**

"NOOOOOOOOOO!" Jaune grabbed his head as he screamed.

Con' decided to be merciful and paused the screen. Seeing a fraction of his audience were having their minds blown, they wouldn't be able to watch what else was in store.

"WHAT THE HELL IS THIS!?" Jaune and Cinder bellowed at the same time as they looked to their host for answers. Both then looked at each other in shock and horror.

"Aww, their first words together." Tyrian was really underestimating the killing intent that was radiating off the Fall Maiden, Salem would not be able to save him, hell even Con' may have some trouble if he kept up.

"I'm with this fool?!"

"I'm with this monster?!"

Both shot glares at each other this time. "Stop it!" they both demanded and screamed in rage as the one kept repeating the other.

**"Hey babe, you're late. I was starting to wonder if I was going to find you bleeding out on the street again."**

"What the hell?"

"It's probably not the worst way to meet someone." Taiyang then hand to rub his now sore foot after Summer stepped on it.

**She scoffed. "Jaune, that happened once."**

**He raised an eyebrow. "Does it need to happen more than once?"**

**She smirked as she slid up behind him, wrapping her arms around his waist. "I remember it worked out well for you." She purred.**

**"Because I got to meet you?"**

**"Because you got laid."**

Saphron did not need to hear that. In fact she didn't know whether to cover her ears, curl up into a ball and cry or stab a bitch. Thank god Terra was here to hold her.

**He chuckled. "You're bad."**

**"You have no idea."**

**He turned into her, arms finding their way around her. "What happened?"**

**She sighed. "I got caught up at work. Long day."**

"Oh "Work" Huh?" Jaune quoted with his fingers.

**He leaned down a kissed her forehead. "Sorry baby. Why don't you go get changed and relax? I'll bring you something to drink."**

**She rested her head on his chest. "That sounds nice."**

**"Then go, I'll be there in a minute." He said, turning her out of the kitchen with a swat on the behind to send her on her way.**

Roman couldn't take it anymore "HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH!" he dropped from his seat as he gasped for air. "I can't- AHAHAHA! I can't breathe!" he then crawled to Con' and grasped his arms as he pulled himself up.

"Thank you! Thank you for giving me the opportunity to be a part of this!" he then continued to shake with laughter and he held onto the other worldly being who was unmoved.

If looks could kill, both Roman and Jaune would be a pile of ashes. Roman for obvious reasons and Jaune for the witnessed smack on said behind. And this death glare wasn't just from Cinder, someone else was even greener with envy.

Mercury had a new found respect for the Arc after such a bold move.

'_It's okay Jaune, she may have stolen your heart but she hasn't taken everything yet!' _Jaune internally calmed himself.

**A few minutes later, Cinder emerged from her room, clad in the uniform of conquers.**

Roman was practically dying at this point with Watts and Tyrian joining him.

**Sweatpants and a Pumpkin Pete hoodie that her husband had lost the battle for in the opening weeks of their relationship.**

'_Fuck!'_ Jaune thought. She had taken everything.

**She'd called it childish, but it'd grown on her, and now it, like him, were hers.**

**She made her way to the living room, plopping down in her chair. A rich, dark leather recliner that she would have said had far too much padding, till Jaune had shown her the error of her ways. He was good at that.**

"I don't believe it, I'm watching it but im still not believing it." Yang didn't know to laugh at the situation or feel bad for this Jaune.

"Just what are we watching?" Blake truly didn't know at this point.

**Her apron clad knight appeared shortly after, his weapon of choice…**

"Sword! Go for the sword!" Jaune cried.

…**a martini, in hand.**

"Damnit!"

**"Here you go baby."**

**She gratefully accepted the drink. "My hero." She said, as she patted the area on the seat next to her, inviting him to sit.**

**"Tell me about it?" He asked as he settled in beside her.**

**She sighed. "So, we've got a big acquisition coming up right? So, we're having to outsource, and these contractors are killing me."**

**"That bad?"**

**"Jaune, they're the worst. This one…Sadam-"**

Face palms at this point whilst Adam snarled.

Emerald spoke. "I don't think he'll buy that name."

**"That's a weird name."**

Jaune smacked himself at that.

"Wait, why change the name? It's not like the name "Adam" is uncommon." Sun asked.

**"Don't worry about it. Anyway, he's providing the muscle-er, manpower, and he's just so needy. He's constantly droning on and on about 'what his people are owed' and 'getting their due,' and I keep having to tell him this is the best deal he's going to get."**

Que more snarling at that.

Blake on the other hand "Oh my God, someone finally put it into words."

**"Is it a good deal?"**

**"To die for, babe. We're really going to rock this city to its core, if he'd just listen."**

"How much more obvious can you be?" Mercury shook his head.

"To be fair, not a lot of people plan on destroying a kingdom." Ren came to his leaders defence. Even if his taste in women was dangerous.

**He chuckled. "You sure love hyperbole."**

**She smiled. "Don't I though?" She scowled again. "But that's not the worst part! He keeps whining about his ex. Is there anything more annoying? I think I'm going to adopt it as a torture method."**

"Stalker alert." Yang stage whispered, making a few chuckle and Blake smile. Point 1 for Yang.

**"What?"**

**"Just a joke Jaune." She smiled at him conspiratorially. "Besides, I have people for that."**

**He shook his head. "You're weird. So, I'm guessing they didn't end on good terms?"**

**She snorted. "She literally ran away."**

**His eyes widened. "Wow, that's intense. Does he wear all black to complete the image?"**

Neo was giving Roman CPR at this point.

**She gave him a look.**

**"Holy shit! He does?!"**

**"Jaune, his last name might as well be Lord, first name Edge."**

Said edge lord looked ready to kill everyone in the room.

**He chuckled. "You don't have the most expressive of wardrobes either, you know." He picked at the hoodie. "Though Pete does look good on you."**

**She flicked him. "Hush you. I make everything look good."**

'_Damn right I do.'_

**He smirked. "You love me."**

**She ran a hand along his cheek. "I do." The oven beeped from the other room. "Now go fulfil your house husband duties and feed us."**

**He snorted as he got up. "Just be glad one of us can cook. I swear you could burn water."**

**"It's a talent."**

"Wait, is that why you never cooked? Not because you're the boss but because you're a shit cook?" despite not knowing it, Emerald saved Mercury by shutting him up with a back hand to the balls.

**Her scroll rang, and she glanced at the caller ID.**

**Roman. She groaned.**

**"You ok?" Jaune asked from the kitchen.**

**"Fine, it's just a work call."**

**She flicked the answer button, audio only of course.**

**"What?" She growled.**

**"Someone's in a mood."**

**"Roman, I have neither the time, nor the patience for this. I'm about to go into a VERY important meeting."**

"Some meeting." Roman snorted.

"Um, kinda is." Jaune said "What? Im cooking, she better damn well eat it, no calls or anything." Jaune continued after the looks he got.

Saphron remembered the time when Jaune had cooked for the family and when she said she needed to take an important call, he took her scroll and chucked it out the window.

**"Ok, ok! Geez, I just wanted to give you an update on the Dust."**

**"Speak." She demanded.**

**There was silence from the other end of the line for a moment. "We're behind schedule."**

"By yours truly." Ruby boasted proudly.

**"I'm not a woman to disappoint Roman. How far behind?"**

**He took a deep breath. "I need another two weeks to do it safely."**

**"Roman, you misunderstand, it's your safety I'm concerned about. About what will happen to you and the imp you cavort around with if you fail to meet the deadline."**

Neo grew an offended look 'Imp?!'

Roman turned to Jaune. "Kid, if watching this is a learning experience, learn to never forget anything, anniversaries being very important."

**She could **_**hear**_** him sweating. "But I-"**

**"If that Dust isn't in the warehouse by Friday, there will be-"**

**Jaune called to her from the kitchen. "Cinnamon bun, do you want potatoes or rice with the chicken?"**

""Cinnamon bun"?" Mercury then shut up at the fiery glare.

**"Hold on you fool." She whispered into the phone, before covering the receiver. "Do we have sweet potatoes?" She yelled back to her husband.**

**"Yep! I'll put them on."**

**"Thank you, baby! You're my kitchen knight!"**

"He really is." Nora liked his cooking.

**"The one and only!"**

**She removed her hand from the receiver. "They will tell stories about what happens to you for years if you fail me."**

**"Who was that?"**

**"Someone that could have you killed with a word. Now, do we understand each other?"**

**"Yes." Came the forlorn reply.**

**"Yes, what?" She hissed.**

**"Yes, ma'am!"**

**"Good. One way or another, we'll see each other Friday."**

**She ended the call before he could think of something clever.**

**"Cinnamon bun? Are you done with your call? Can you set the table?" A voice that sounded like home asked.**

"Who do you think you're ordering?"

**"Of course, my knight!" She answered instantly.**

Jaune looked at her with a smug look, "I think im ordering you." She growled at the fool.

"Enough with the sexual tension you two."

Jaune looked back at Cinder, "If you kill anyone, can it be him?" Qrow flipped him off in return while Summer elbowed the drunk.

**Cinder Fall was a monster yes, but to Jaune, she was simply his wife…and she'd kill to keep it that way.**

**0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0 **

**CHAPTER 2**

**Cinder Fall was a monster.**

"It's been established." Yang snorted.

**Emerald Sustrai knew this, but in truth, held somewhat softer feelings for the woman.**

'Oh please, that's an understatement. If Em was a guy, those feelings would be hard.' Mercury internally spoke as he outwardly rolled his eyes.

**To her, Cinder Fall was an animal. A vicious, apex predator to be sure, but one that craved the same things all animals did. Safety and comfort.**

Neo knew what that was like, to desire those two seemingly simple things. That's why she stayed with Roman, the ice cream and the hurting people being bonuses.

**She didn't understand the source of her comfort, but then, no one had asked her. But if she understood one thing about animals, it's that you didn't get between them and what was theirs.**

**Not if you wanted to stay amongst the living.**

**And so, Emerald began her weekly ritual of standing in front of the Arc-Fall…**

Cinder raised an eyebrow at that but conceded that 'Fall-Arc' didn't really roll of the tongue. Wait? What were these thoughts? She should be disgusted! Not contemplating last names like some lovey dovey fool!

…**door, trying to purge anything from her mind that might incriminate her boss...to her husband...people were weird.**

**She took a deep breath, steadied herself, and knocked twice. The face that answered the door was friendly, almost unreasonably friendly, with its bright blue eyes and goofy grin.**

**"Hey Em! How's it going?" Jaune asked, as he leaned against the door frame.**

**"Oh, you know, just keeping busy."**

"Wonder how many people you robbed to consider a day busy."

"Eat shit Merc'. Don't try and make my talents out to be a bad thing."

**"I, um, like your new outfit?" He said, glancing down at her.**

_**My new outfit?**_

**She looked down at her usual outfit, one that was meant to draw eyes places other than her hands, and realized what he meant. She had made a habit of changing into something a bit more...conservative, before coming over in the past.**

**She mentally shrugged. Damage done.**

_**It's not like I can use my Semblance on him now.**_

**"I was, uh...hiking. It's a new hobby." She lied.**

"Don't fall for it…"

**"Cool." He accepted easily…**

"Oh God damnit me."

…**Stepping back and holding the door open. "Come on in and have a seat, I'll go grab Cindy."**

**"Thanks." **_**I'll never get used to this.**_

**She made her way to the living room and settled on the couch, sitting opposite of what she'd learned was 'Cinder's chair.'**

_**Black leather couch…shocker.**_

_"Are you calling me predictable Emerald?" Cinder stared into Emeralds eyes as she asked this. Said thief just looked back at the screen._

_'Basic Bitch more like' Neo texted to Roman who quietly laughed at that._

**She was quick to stand when Cinder entered the room, despite Jaune waving for her to remain seated.**

**"Ma'am." She greeted.**

**"Cinder." She corrected with a glance at Jaune, motioning for her to take a seat as she found her own. "How are you Emerald?"**

**"I'm well Cinder. I have an update about the situation at the…office, like you asked." She tried.**

**Cinder nodded absently. "Yes?"**

**Emerald coughed and shot a glance towards Jaune, happily resting on his own plush, brown recliner. "We uh, found out where the water was coming from and-"**

**"Fascinating." Cinder cut her off, eyes scanning over her, before narrowing. "Emerald that is a…**_**adventurous**_** outfit."**

Now any Woman that had, has or intent to have a lover knew where this was going, Kali herself was wearing a Cheshire grin. Raven, despite her past, knew this feeling all too well also.

Salem remembered the days when she and Ozma were together during the days of the old world, many women liked Ozma for being such a powerful wizard.

It was up to Salem to show them that she was in fact, quite powerful herself and show Ozma why she was the better _woman_.

'Yes Cinder.' She thought, 'Show any hussies that he belongs to you.'

_**Uh oh.**_

**"Yeah, she started hiking recently apparently! Surprised me too, I always thought she was a city girl." Jaune offered.**

**"Hiking? That must be quite a lot of work. My and doesn't she look **_**thirsty**_**? Jaune, could you be a dear and grab our resident 'hiker' some water?"**

_**Oh fuck.**_

_"Indeed." Ghira could tell what was happening, having to stop Kali from permanently damaging any women that tried to seduce him._

**"No, no, no! I'm fine!" She blurted out, leaning forward out of her seat.**

**Cinder tsked. "Nonsense dear, you look positively **_**parched**_**."**

**Jaune smiled and motioned for her to sit as he stood. "It's just water Em, I'll be right back."**

**"Thank you dear, take your time." Cinder encouraged.**

"Is this about to become some snuff film?" Mercury asked

**Emerald's eyes followed him in silent horror as he merrily left her to her doom, Cinder's gaze boring into her. As soon as he cleared the room, she snapped back to the dark-haired woman.**

**"It's not what you're thinking!"**

**Cinder raised an eyebrow. "You know what I'm thinking? Is that your Semblance now?"**

**"N-no, I just-"**

**"Part of me is surprised you didn't try to use your Semblance on me while you showed off, though I would have known of course."**

**Emerald's brow creased at that. "How-"**

**"Because I always know." She said, leaving no room for argument. "Though this," she made a gesture towards the green-haired girl, "cavorting around in front of me AND my husband? Might be worse."**

"Protective." Qrow remarked.

"Most people are when others try to steal what they cherish most." Summer joked.

**Emerald's jaw worked up and down silently for a moment, sweat trickling down her forehand. "I-"**

**"Got the water!" Jaune announced, as he re-entered the room, delivering it with a flourish. "Here you go Em."**

**"T-thanks."**

"For the water or for coming back?"

**"No problem!" He said, as he walked back over to his chair. "What where you guys talking about? Water in the office? Like a leak?"**

**"Precisely dear." Cinder answered, staring Emerald down.**

**She winced. **_**Ok, I probably could have been a bit more inventive with that one.**_

**He shrugged. "I can take care of it for you, no need to hire someone."**

"Responsible, smart, caring, listener, a cook, cleaner and a plumber? Hard to believe he's single." Harriet smirked as Jaune blushed.

Winter turned to her sister. "Sister, you claimed that Arc tried to court you before?"

Weiss slowly nodded. "That I did?"

"And you turned down his advances?"

"Yes…"

Winter hummed before turning away. "A shame you let such a catch go." Winter smirked to herself as she could hear Weiss chocking on her own spit as Ruby smacked her back to help.

**"That's ok!" Emerald rushed out. "We've got a guy!"**

**"Are you sure? I'm pretty handy."**

**Cinder patted his arm and gave him a warm smile. "I know dear, but I think that this was caused by lack of proper maintenance, and I simply**_** insist**_** that people clean up their own messes. Isn't that right Emerald?"**

**The tan girl nodded numbly.**

**"Well ok, if you're sure…"**

**"Certain, my knight. After all, this should be taken care of by…"**

**"Tomorrow!" Emerald snapped out, sitting on the edge of her seat.**

Cinder once again raised an eyebrow as she contemplated. Good results without the threat of pain or death? And all because of Arc? Interesting.

**"Excellent." Cinder nodded, before turning to Jaune and motioning to Emerald. "Dear, look at how stressed she is."**

**He frowned. "You ok Em?"**

**"Great! Never better! Fantastic!"**

**Cinder shook her head slowly. "Poor thing's a mess. Jaune, could you go get some wine for us all? Maybe that will calm her nerves."**

**"Sure!" He agreed, popping up again.**

'NO!'

**"NO!" She practically shrieked, reaching out to stop him.**

**"Emerald." Cinder warned in a low tone, forcing her back down into her seat. "Our home is your home, and apparently, what is **_**mine **_**is yours."**

"Very protective." Kali snuggled against her husband as she enjoyed the viewing.

**Jaune shook his head. "Geez Em, you're frazzled. I'll grab some of the good stuff for us, won't be two shakes."**

_**DON'T LEAVE ME!**_

**"Oh, I think we still have a bottle of the Mistralian left dear, see if you can find it." Cinder offered as he walked towards the kitchen.**

**Emerald would bet every dollar she'd ever stolen that bottle didn't exist. She winced as his footsteps faded.**

**"Cinder, I would never-"**

**"Oh?" She drawled. "Do you not find my Jaune attractive?"**

Pyrrha's arm rests nearly cracked under the pressure of her hold on them. _HER JAUNE?!_

**"No! I mean yes!"**

"Should have stayed with no." Kali tutted.

"Really? I'd figure that yes would be safer." Sienna questioned.

"Well personally, say I ask you if you think my husband is dashing and you say no, I'd believe that it's just a matter of opinion. If you said yes, then I would see you as competition that needs to go." The smile that followed seemed kind and warm, but the women knew it was a threat if any dared go for what was hers.

**She hummed. "So, you admit to being attracted to my husband."**

_**This is hell. Mercury smothered me in my sleep last night, and I'm currently in hell.**_

**"Not that I could particularly blame you of course. After all, I chose him."**

**She left out a sigh of relief.**

_**Thank the Gods!**_

**"If you hadn't acted on it, of course."**

_**The Gods can fuck right off.**_

_Said gods would have pulled a face, if either of them bloody had one that was._

**"I-"**

**Cinder shrugged. "Let's see how Jaune feels about it, shall we?" She turned and yelled to the other room. "Honey! Did you find the wine? Any will do if you can't find that bottle, but I've got a question for you."**

_**AAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH!**_** Emerald screamed internally.**

**"Coming!" His voice called as his footsteps echoed down the hall.**

**Cinder smirked at her as he entered the room, glasses and wine in hand.**

**"What's up babe?" He asked, concern clear on his face.**

**She smiled at him. "Oh, nothing life threatening…" A glance at Emerald confirmed that that was untrue. "…It's just that I've found out what's got Em so down."**

**He perked up. "What's that?"**

**Cinder gave him a sad look. "She feels unattractive."**

_**NONONONONO!**_

**He scoffed. "That's ridiculous, she's beautiful. I'm sure lots of guys are dying to meet her."**

_**We're both going to die here Jaune.**_

_"Yes we are so please keep your mouth shut if you want to live as well." Jaune was getting tired of explaining that he couldn't control another Jaune's actions._

**The woman in red sighed. "That's what I said, but she wasn't convinced. She wanted to know what **_**you**_** think."**

**"But I just-"**

**Cinder shook her head. "No baby, like, would YOU date her? Hypothetically, of course."**

**Emerald's eyes were about to pop out of her head.**

_**IT'SATRAPIT'SATRAPIT'SATRAPIT'SATRAP!**_

**He coloured. "Oh."**

**"You don't have to answer!" She assured him hurriedly.**

**Cinder silenced her with a hand. "Nonsense dear, it's just a simple question. This is about**_** you**_** after all. Jaune?"**

**He coughed. "Well, I uh…" His eyes met the floor.**

_**NO! THE ANSWER IS NO! PLEASE JAUNE PLEASE!**_

_Cinder would take this to her grave but would be __very__ disappointed if Jaune answered in a way she didn't like._

**He swallowed and looked at her. "I mean…yeah, if I hadn't met Cindy, and you had asked…I'd probably have been head over heels."**

_**WHHHHHYYYYYYY!?**_

**"Awww, that's so sweet." Cinder crooned at Jaune, before turning her gaze to Emerald. "Now, don't you feel better? Don't you feel more attractive?"**

**"Amazingly so." She squeaked.**

**Jaune chuckled as he set the glasses down, pouring wine for them. "Well, now that we've got the awkwardness out of the way, did you want to stay for dinner? I was just about to put something on."**

**"NO!" She yelped, leaping from her seat, earning a hurt look from the blond. "I mean…You've inspired me! I've got to get back out there! There's plenty of fish in the sea!"**

'Yes, leave little miss home-wrecker' Cinder was starting to think something was seriously wrong with her.

**Cinder smiled. "That's the spirit, dear."**

**"Thanks for everything!" She blurted out as she rushed for the door.**

**"Go get'em Em!" Jaune called after her as the door slammed. He shook his head and turned to his wife. "You know, I wouldn't have guessed how much of a mess she is."**

**She chuckled. "Yes, she has a talent for putting up facades." She hummed as she stretched in her chair. "Also, I'm hungry."**

**He smiled at her. "Dinner will be ready in a jiff."**

**She shook her head, rising from her seat and walking over to him. "But I'm hungry now."**

"Either just eat or eat right, all it'll cost is a little patience." Jaune answered.

**He laughed. "I can't make it any fast-"**

**She wrapped her arms around his neck and whispered in ear. "But I'm **_**hungry,**_** Jaune."**

The theatre glowed red with the blushes from the audience. This time Jaune didn't have an answer for that.

Ruby had a strange feeling in the pit of her gut at the image in front of her, that Jaune was doing filth with Cinder of all people, though the more she thought about it, she realised it wasn't just because it was Cinder, just any woman that wasn't her-!

No! She couldn't think that about her male bestie! Even if she would watch him clean up after train-! No! Bad thoughts!

Pyrrha had that face, ya know the one when their face is covered with a shadow and their eyes glow in the darkness with killing intent strong enough to erase any life before their gaze due to the soul destroying rage that had built up inside them and if unleashed could make Salem quake in fear… that face.

Blake was making scenarios in her mind, her filthy, filthy mind.

"Oh my~" Kali giggled as she remembered doing something similar with her Ghira.

If Raven had any regrets, it was that she couldn't just jump Tai whenever she felt like it.

Willow missed the passion she and Jacques shared after he decided that work was more important than her. That or he just couldn't get it up and used work as an excuse. Damn that limp-dick bastard.

**She smirked, enjoying the way he stiffened, and how his arms wrapped around her soon after.**

**"Then what kind of house husband would I be if I didn't feed you?" He whispered back.**

**You never get between an animal and what's theirs.**

**0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0 **

**CHAPTER 3**

**Cinder Fall was a monster.**

**Mercury Black knew this. He also knew that she was not a monster that you refused.**

**He'd learned this lesson years ago, on the side of a darkened road, his father's still warm blood soaking into his clothes. It was a lesson that had been reinforced, time and again, as he watched others make that fatal mistake. He didn't consider himself an overly intelligent man, but he could watch and learn.**

**All of this is to say, that when Cinder informed them that they'd be attending a monthly 'game night' at the Arc-Fall household, he'd said 'yes ma'am.' He understood how their arrangement worked.**

"Game night? What are we? A couple of nerds in some basement?" Emerald complained while Mercury stayed silent, he loved a good game whenever he could. Just wouldn't admit it.

**What he was having trouble understanding, was his partner's trepidation upon approaching the door...and her unusual attire.**

**He shot her a sideways glance. "Em, its July. Why are you wearing a sweater?"**

This got chuckles, all knowing the reason why.

**"I don't want to talk about it."**

**His forehead creased. "Did something happen last week?"**

"There was nearly a murder so yeah."

"Shut it top heavy."

"Oh? So only you get to show off for the guys?" this got some more laughter while Emerald and Ruby may as well have changed names with how red Emerald was at that moment.

**"I. Don't. Want. To. Talk. About. It."**

**He sighed and knocked on the door. "Whatever."**

**Seconds later, another thing he didn't understand opened to door.**

**"Merc! Em! How you doing? Come on in!" Jaune greeted with grin, as he led them into his living room.**

**"We're doing good bro. It's been too long." He returned with a smile.**

**Jaune chuckled. "Yeah, but I get that you guys are busy. Cindy says you've got some kind of big job coming up."**

**"Yeah, it's uh, really going to change things around here."**

"How obvious can they be?!" Weiss shook her head as Jaune face palmed again at his others density.

**Jaune shook his head. "You guys sure aim high. You still doing breakdancing?"**

"Wait what?" Yang started to get a shark like grin.

**Mercury rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "Uh, not so much recently. Work, you know?"**

**Jaune tsked. "Man, you gotta make time for you. Like Em, she took up hiking recently."**

**He shot a look towards his partner, who was carefully studying the designs in the carpet, before responding.**

**"Hey bro, when you're right, you're right. I'll work on it. But enough about that boring shit, what are we playing tonight?"**

**Jaune smirked. "Risk, what else? I swear, Cindy's got a touch of megalomania."**

"It's like he knows her so well, but at the same time he doesn't." Blake commented.

**Mercury chuckled nervously. "Man, can you imagine?"**

**The blond laughed with him. "Cindy? Never. You guys get comfortable, I'll go check on the big softy and get the snacks."**

**"Thanks bro!" Merc called as the Jaune made his way out of the room, before sighing and collapsing on the couch.**

**Emerald's eyes snapped over to him. "Isn't it weird?" She hissed.**

**He snorted. "Which part? The part where three of the most proficient killers in Remnant are meeting up to play board games? The part where they're the equivalent of a Beowolf being married to a golden retriever? Or the part where the retriever seems to be the one holding the leash?"**

"And once again, this madness has been put into words." Pyrrha finally used her words.

Cinder once again glared at Mercury. "I'm on the leash am I?" any sweat the leaked from the silver assassin was evaporated from the heat Cinder's glare produced.

**Emerald opened her mouth, closed it, and shook her head. "Well, all of that, but I meant how **_**normal **_**this has all become."**

**He shrugged. "Normal is a weird word for any of this, but I don't get why you're so upset. Jaune's cool...for being Jaune." He smirked at her. "Are you mad that mommy brought home a new daddy?" He waggled his eyebrows at her. "Or maybe, you wish he was your daddy?"**

**His eyes widened as Em's head whipped around the room in a panic.**

Laughter erupted once again whilst Emerald glared at Mercury though Cinder didn't know whether to glare at the possible threat or laugh along.

**He sat up excitedly. "Oh my Gods, there's a story here!"**

**She jammed a finger in his face. "Say that shit again, and I'll make you see**_** your **_**daddy in the buff, wherever you go."**

**He held up his hands in defeat. "Ok, ok, I was just curious!"**

**"Whatever." She huffed, before raising an eyebrow. "Anyway, breakdancing?"**

**He sighed. "Jaune caught me training one day. I had to tell him **_**something**_**, and I panicked."**

**She smirked. "And he believed you?"**

**He shook his head. "Did more than that. Got super excited and supportive about the whole thing. Signed me up for a competition that Big Daddy Bane was hosting."**

**"Big Daddy Bane the drug lord?" She asked incredulously.**

**"How many Big Daddy Banes do you know? And really, you have a hard time believing that Jaune makes weird friends?"**

"So let me get this straight, Im friends with a drug lord along with an assassin, a thief and im married to a super powered woman that can literally burn anything in her path. Am I missing anything out?" Jaune hoped that that was the end to that craziness.

"You're forgetting that your wife works for the most dangerous being on the planet." Raven helpfully informed him.

"Wait!" Nora exclaimed, "If Jaune were to accidently find out about these guys." Nora pointed to Salem and the others of WTCH "Would Cinder try to play them off as her mom and the others her brothers?" trust Nora to add to the crazy. Cinder blanched at the thought of doing something so foolish.

**"How do they even know each other?"**

**He shrugged. "I think they're part of the same book club or something. 'Ninjas of Love,' or something like that."**

**She shook her head. "So how'd you get out of it?"**

**"I didn't." He answered flatly, causing her jaw to drop. "I**_** had **_**to go! He fucking showed up! He even had a handmade sign that said, 'YOU'RE GONNA GET MERC'D.'"**

"Shit that's good." Mercury admitted.

**"...That's actually pretty good."**

**He laughed. "I know, right? I'm totally stealing it! Anyway, you want to know the craziest part? I won." He pointed a thumb at himself proudly. "You're looking at the three-time defending Vale breakdancing king."**

**She barked a laugh. "You kept going?"**

**"You know, we actually had a lot of fun, weird as that sounds. Jaune keeps coming out when he can." He shot her a look. "I don't know if you've ever had your own personal hype-man, but I **_**highly**_** recommend it. The dude is just always there for you, super supportive and...Huh." He finished as his eyes widened in realization.**

**She cocked her head at him. "What?"**

**"I-I think I just realized that I wish Jaune was my dad."**

"Looks like I'm not the only one looking for a daddy." Emerald mocked.

"First off, thanks for admitting you were looking for someone and second, my case is emotional while yours is sexual." Mercury shot back.

**She patted his shoulder as she took a seat beside him. "I'm here for you during this confusing time."**

**"Ok! I'm back, and I've got cookies!" Jaune announced triumphantly, as he returned with tray in hand.**

Ruby drooled at the sight of the freshly baked, homemade, heavenly gift before she wished for some, and low and behold a plate of cookies appeared as she graced her taste buds while summer smiled at the scene.

**"My man!" Mercury said, as he grabbed one before the tray even had the chance to touch the coffee table.**

**Emerald sighed. "He means, 'thank you. Jaune.'" She apologized, as she grabbed one of her own**

**"No problem, Em. How's the dating scene? Catch anything yet?"**

**She choked on her cookie, going into a coughing fit.**

**Jaune started patting her on the back. "Em, you ok? You need water?"**

**Mercury tsked. "She's fine, you just brought up a sore subject. I hear she got rejected recently." He finished with a grin, earning him a glare from the girl as she pounded on her chest.**

**The blond frowned and shook his head sadly. "Em, I'm not sure who this guy is, but he sounds dense."**

**"You have no idea." She grumbled.**

**Mercury smiled at Jaune. "Ignore the sour puss. Regale us with tales of how you wooed the boss."**

This caught the attention of the audience, many wanted to know how such an unlikely bond could have happened, was it blackmail? Pity? Lust? Or genuine love?

Despite everything, Salem truly wanted it to be out of genuine live. She herself had a taste of that with her beloved. Yes she hated Ozpin with every fibre of her being and wished to crush whatever he held dear.

But she could never not love Ozma.

Even through the years of her rage, she knew deep down that she wanted to be with him.

Hatred just overpowered love.

But she didn't want that for Cinder, sometimes she saw her dark maiden as another daughter, and if Cinder could find another love other than for power, then Salem would encourage that love.

Just as long as she remembered her place that is.

**The blond rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "Well, it's not really much of a story…"**

**"Pssh, are you kidding? No one has ever come close to bedding the boss lady before you, and you managed to make her settle down, there's got to be a story. Plus, maybe it'll help Em." He added, watching the young man's desire to help break him.**

**Jaune sighed. "Ok, ok, but only till Cindy gets here. She hates this story."**

_**Jaune Arc was a weak man.**_

"Well if this is before Beacon then that's true." Jaune conceded.

"But look how far you've come! I don't call you Mr. Muscles for nothing ya know!" Nora cheered. Ren nodded along.

"It is true how much you have progressed, while you do still have a long way, you have covered a great distance."

"Even now I can tell how much you've changed Jaune. Never forget that." Pyrrha held his hand tightly as she grace him with a loving smile.

Jaune gave his team a genuine smile at that. "Thanks guys."

_**He knew this. He'd failed to make into the school of his dreams. He'd failed to return home and face his family after. He'd failed to find steady work after that.**_

"So in this one, Vomit boy never got into Beacon?" Yang asked rhetorically.

"But wait! What would that mean for team JNPR!? Would we even be Juniper!? Without Jaune, it would just be NPR! Niper! That name sucks and doesn't even make sense! It's a made up word! MADE UP I TELL YA! Though all words are technically made up." Nora went from curious, to scared realisation, to heart wrenched sorrow, to shaking Jaune by his collar, to erratic and back to curious in a matter of seconds.

"Well I know what they'd be called-"

"Yes Merc' they'd be called Team PRN or porn, everyone could see that."

"Uh actually. I was gonna say team VPR, as in Viper. Get your mind out of the gutter Em, stop thinking about your future _daddy~_" Emerald would give back everything she had stolen to each individual perso… _living_ person, if it meant she could gut the silver prick.

_**Jaune Arc was a weak man, it was known far and wide.**_

_**It was because he was such a weak man that he couldn't keep on walking when he saw her slumped over in the fetal position on the edge of the street, illuminated by the failing lights of the lamp posts in his rundown neighbourhood. **_

"Uh, what exactly could make hurt maiden like that?" Jaune asked.

"While yes maidens are powerful, they are not untouchable or invincible, just look how Cinder got her powers." Ozpin explained, though was curious himself.

"And I think she was only at half the maiden's power at that time." Qrow theorised.

_**He'd never understood how the Vale natives could just keep on walking past someone in need. **_

"Because it's either a play to get you close and rob or attack you, both usually or none of their business. That's the streets kid, the real world." Roman educated while Neo nodded silently.

_**Maybe that made him weak, but he was ok with that.**_

Raven shook her head, the strong survive and the weak die. How could anyone be okay with being weak?

_**He rushed over to her and placed a hand on her shoulder.**_

**"**_**Ma'am, are you-"**_

_**He pulled his hand back in shock, finding it slick with blood. A LOT of blood.**_

_**He turned her as gently as he could, rolling her on her back, revealing a series of deep cuts trailing down her arms and torso. He panicked, there was no other word for it. He should have called an ambulance, he should have called the police, he should have done something smart. What he did instead, was scoop her up in his arms and sprint towards his apartment, the med kit that he'd prepared for Beacon the only thing on mind.**_

Glynda sighed. "It's like every day is another reason he shows that he truly belongs at Beacon and you prove me wrong old friend." She whispered to her friend.

Ozpin sipped his coffee before speaking, "Strength and skills are good to have in a war, but to not have compassion or care? Then we'd merely be saving this world from creatures that do not care for their own blood and replacing those with ourselves."

_**Gods but she was light and frail. What kind of monsters would do this to a defenceless woman?**_

Cinder hated this, hated seeing herself be weak once again, seeing herself need someone else to help her and hated the fact that it was someone even weaker than her. Though at that point, she was more pathetic than him. She wanted nothing more than to incinerate the image before her.

_**He bounded up the stairs three at a time, cursing as he fumbled with his keys, while trying not to jostle her too much.**_

_**Gods that was a lot of blood.**_

_**He dropped the keys and watched as they tumbled down the steps. He winced as his boot crashed into the door, forcing it open. Another thing he'd worry about later, when there was time for anything but her.**_

"And where the hell was this treatment with me kid?" Qrow gave him a hard, questioning look. "Was it because I didn't have tits? OW!"

"Thank you." Willow said to Summer.

"You're welcome." She beamed back.

_**He set her down as gently as he could on the couch, before rushing to the closet and digging out his kit. He applied pressure and then the bandages with an ease that he silently thanked his father for drilling into them growing up, removing clothing as needed. Once the dressings were applied, he sighed and looked over her.**_

**"**_**What happened to you?" He whispered, before wiping his hands and pulling out his scroll, quickly dialing 911, letting out a yelp as the device exploded in his hand.**_

**"**_**Piece of shit!" He cursed, shaking the sting out of his hand.**_

"You know, I've never heard him swear before." Coco said.

"Me neither, and we spend more time with Jauney boy compared to Coco." Yang agreed.

NPR stayed silent as they had a flash back to Jaune playing a game called _**"Getting over it."**_

So much rage, so many bad words. So many chairs being throw. Nora couldn't sleep for a week without Ren being beside her. Pyrrha felt like she needed to go to some religious cleansing afterwards.

**"**_**...no hospital." He heard a weak voice call out from behind him.**_

_**He whipped around, and saw a pair of bleary eyes staring at him. He fell to his knees in front of her.**_

**"**_**Are you ok?! Hey, we need to get you to a hospital, you need medical attention."**_

_**She struggled to rise. "T-they'll check the hospitals." She winced and collapsed again. "...not safe." She panted.**_

_**He placed a gentle hand on her shoulder. "Hey, just relax, save you strength! I'm not gonna let anyone hurt you. Just stay right here, I'll get you some water."**_

_**He went to the kitchen and filled one of the two glasses he owned with water, before returning to find the girl fast asleep.**_

_**He shook his head and placed the glass on the water on the end table before laying out in front of the couch.**_

_**Jaune Arc was a weak man, but for tonight at least, he swore to be something more.**_

_**He woke with a start, looking around at his flat from his unfamiliar position on the floor. Why was he on the-**_

_**His head whipped around to find her, letting out a sigh of relief as he saw her chest rising and falling steadily. **_

"I don't think her eyes are there Jaune." Yang teased the now blushing boy.

"Pervert." That comment from Cinder didn't help.

_**He pushed himself up to his knees and leaned over her. He made quick work of checking her bandages, shocked to find just how quickly she seemed to be recovering, before brushing the hair out of her face.**_

_**Gods, she's so beautiful-**_

Cinder tenderly touched her charred face, she was beautiful. _Was_. Now that was gone.

_**He felt something sharp press into a VERY sensitive spot.**_

_**-And so very, very armed.**_

"Appropriate response to being in a stranger's home with no recollection." Terra spoke.

**"**_**Who are you?" She hissed, as her eyes popped open. "Where am I?"**_

**"**_**Jaune Arc! You're in my apartment! You're safe!" He yelped.**_

_**She scowled. "You live in the slums?"**_

_**He scoffed. "Hey, it's not that bad! It just needs some love."**_

**"**_**It needs to be burned down. How did I get here?" She asked, as she pressed the knife into his groin again.**_

_**He winced. "I brought you here after I found you in the street."**_

_**Her eyes shot around the room. "Was there anyone else?"**_

_**He shook his head vigorously. "Just you. You're safe, I promise, Arc's word. You kept saying something about Amber. Is she your friend? We can find her. That and maidens." He winced again. "Hey, whatever happened, we can get you help, and it doesn't make you any less of a person."**_

_**Her brows knit together in confusion as she seemed to consider the impossibility that was him. "You're a strange man. Not too smart either." She decided finally.**_

_**He chuckled. "Ouch, coming from someone bleeding all over my couch, that stings."**_

_**She pulled the knife back and looked at the tattered couch beneath her. "You paid for this?"**_

**"**_**Well I-"**_

**"**_**It's hideous. Why didn't you put me on the bed?" Her eyes glanced about the room. "Where is the bed?"**_

_**He sighed. "You're on it."**_

Whitely shuddered at the thought of sleeping on something that wasn't a king sized 300 thread count bed. Urgh! Poor people. (1% problems, am I right?)

_**She scoffed. "You're poor."**_

**"**_**Financially challenged with room for upward mobility." He corrected.**_

_**She snorted. "A LOT of room. What do you do?"**_

_**He shrugged. "A bit of this, a bit of that. Handyman, dog walker, part-timer…" He smirked. "...and now a nurse for pretty ladies."**_

_**She squinted at him. "Are you...flirting with me?"**_

"Wow Jaune. Really? Now of all times?" Jaune didn't have a reply so Weiss just went back to the screen.

**"**_**Maybe. How's it going?"**_

**"**_**You're very bad at it."**_

_**He chuckled. "That's about what I expected. Luckily, I'm better at making breakfast. Now, how do you like your eggs and toast?"**_

_**She considered him for a moment, before making some silent decision. "Scrambled and burnt."**_

_**He smiled at her. "Coming right up."**_

"Damn, takes her home, lets her sleep in, she wakes up sore and even makes her breakfast? Not a lot of women are so lucky." Vernal snickered.

_**Jaune Arc was a weak man, but he didn't feel that way around her.**_

**"Aww weeee." Mercury cooed.**

**"And that's how he became my knight."**

**Jaune spun around in the living room, facing a hoodie and sweatpants clad Cinder.**

"Still not use to that." Emerald muttered.

"Wishing it was you wearing it?"

**"Baby! I was just-"**

**"That couch WAS hideous by the way."**

**He tsked. "Didn't scare you off."**

**She hummed. "Very little scares me dear."**

**He laughed. "Yeah, very little scares me anymore either, after watching you try to make eggs for the first time."**

**"Now, now, we all have our talents my knight." Her eyes snapped to Mercury. "It appears one of Mercury's is prying into others affairs. Trying to get a leg up on me, my old friend?"**

**He swallowed. "Nope, just uh...curious."**

**"Good, that's good. I'd hate to have to take your legs out from under you...again."**

**He slowly worked his mouth up and down as she stared him down. "I-"**

**Jaune grabbed his wife by the waist and pulled her into a crushing hug, earning a yelp from the dark-haired beauty.**

"This is just too weird." Mercury said.

"Wishing it was you getting a hug instead?" Emerald mocked back.

**"Cindy! We promised no work talk at game night. Besides, everyone knows not mess with the 'big bad business woman.'"**

**She sighed and smiled up at him. "Of course my knight, you're right." She cast a glance at Mercury. "On both counts I believe."**

**He almost dislocated something he nodded so fast, before glaring at a snickering Emerald.**

**"You want to say something?" He hissed.**

**"Oh nothing, it's just a lot funnier from the outside."**

**"Emerald, dear." Cinder purred, causing he dark-skinned girl sit ramrod straight. "I **_**love **_**the sweater, it's very becoming on you."**

**"T-thank you!" The green-haired girl stammered.**

**Jaune tilted his head to the side. "Em, it's July. If you're hot, we can find you something that breathes a bit more."**

"See? He wants you out of those clothes. You still have a chance." the two continued this tennis match of mockery.

**"No! I mean, I'm not hot, definitely not! Everyone is breathing just fine, don't do anything!"**

**"She's still high strung." Jaune whispered to his wife.**

**She placed a hand on his cheek. "It's just who she is baby. Can you grab the wine? I forgot it."**

**He nodded. "Sure thing, be right back."**

**She waited till his footsteps faded before returning to the two of them. "Emerald, set up the game, I'm Mistral. Mercury, report."**

**He coughed and stood. "We've taken care of the rat, looks like a one off."**

**"Who was he talking to?"**

**"Dead men."**

**"Cute, that's not what I asked."**

**He shifted nervously. "Well we're still-"**

**She shifted her glance to his partner. "Emerald?"**

**She shot up, sending game pieces flying. "We're using Roman's contacts to find them."**

**"And if he's part of the problem?" The dark-haired woman growled.**

**"Who's part of the problem?" Three sets of eyes snapped over to the wine-bearing blond. "Are we talking about work again?"**

**Cinder tittered. "I'm sorry my knight, I couldn't help it. One of our new contractors is being...vexing."**

**"Oh, is it Sadam again?" He asked.**

**"No, this one is called...Broman."**

""Broman"…" _Roman_ slowly looked towards his former leash handler. "Fucking _"Broman"_?"

'Someone isn't original.' Neo lifted her sign.

**"Broman? That's a weird name."**

**"Don't worry about it." Three voices chorused.**

**He shook his head and laughed as he opened the bottle and filled their glasses. "You guys are right, let's get to the game. Anyone claim Vale yet?"**

**"Not yet dear, not yet." Cinder promised darkly.**

Jaune just couldn't be bothered to point out how obvious it was anymore.

**"All yours bro." Mercury hurriedly assured him.**

**Mercury was losing, and if there was one thing he hated...well, other than his father, the police, Huntsmen, Emerald making him see shit, the colour fushica, mimes...ok, so he hated a lot of shit, losing being among them.**

Sun turned to the guy in question. "Mimes?"

"Fucking mimes. Always doing weird shit. Huh? You're trapped in a box huh? Doesn't stop me from kicking the shit outta ya!" Mercury got lost in his thoughts.

I think he needs therapy.

**Cinder was steadily eating into his Atlesian and Emerald's Vacuan forces, leaving Jaune's forces in Vale in peace. The irony was not lost on him.**

**They had to do something if they wanted to turn the tide. He looked to his partner, who gave him a silent nod. The agreement was made, a non-aggression pact until the more dangerous foe was removed. Just like always.**

Cinder raised her brow at the two who refused to look back at her.

**He made his decision.**

**"I'm going to attack Kuchinashi in Mistral." He announced.**

**"You won't." Cinder responded flatly.**

**"But I-"**

**Her eyes bore into his. "You won't, because you understand that such an action would be suicide. You'd be forgetting your place in the order of things Mercury, and I'd have to teach you it again." She leaned across the table. "And I'm a harsh teacher Mercury. I will start by teaching your tin soldiers the meaning of words such as 'fear' and 'desperation.' Then, once I find my way to your capital, and I will, I'll start teaching new lessons. Your citizens will know the meaning of 'pain' and 'hopelessness,' your children will learn the meaning of 'want' and 'hunger.' I would say that they'll tell stories of your fallen civilization as a warning to others in the future, but that would require me leaving enough for anyone to remember you at all.'" She finished the last of her wine. "So, Mercury, what is it that you want to do?"**

The audience collectively turned to Cinder.

"…What?" She asked with a frown.

Salem was so proud of Cinder at that point.

**He screamed silently for a moment, before his blond messiah saved him.**

**"Ooooookaaaayyy baby." Jaune drawled as he poured a healthy dose of wine into her empty glass. "I think you need a little bit more happy juice and a chill pill."**

Ghira and Taiyang nodded. "Happy wife, happy life." They then looked at each other and nodded in respect.

"See, you already like one blond, why not be kind to another." Kali encouraged her husband.

"The other isn't a husband nor father." He stubbornly crossed his arms.

Kali smirked before wrapping her arms around his massive bicep and whispered. "Well, not yet." She giggled when she felt him tense up.

Sun suddenly fear for his live and reproductive system.

Blake suddenly wanted to scold her mother but didn't know why.

**She blinked, as if waking from a spell. "Did I do the thing again?"**

**Jaune laughed. "I think Merc might have soiled himself."**

**He scoffed. Of course not...most likely not.**

**Cinder turned to the silver-haired man again. "Sorry Mercury. Did you decide what you're going to do?"**

**He made a new decision.**

**"I'm attacking Em!" He answered quickly, his voice shaking a bit more than he'd like.**

**"Asshole!"**

**"Good choice."**

**The next few turns devolved into a vicious civil war between him and Em. One in which he was sure she used her Semblance more than once, she could be vindictive like that. He sighed, and surveyed the board. He was getting desperate, and in his desperation, he risked it all.**

**"Jaune, can you be a bro and help a guy down on his luck?"**

**The blond chuckled. "And go against the missus? No thanks. Besides, I'm going to win here in a minute."**

This caused a pause. "Hol' up." Emerald started.

"Wayment." Mercury continued

"Excuse me?" Cinder finished.

**That caught Cinder's attention. She NEVER lost. "What was that dear?"**

**He shrugged and gestured to the board. "It wasn't too hard, I just had to pay attention to everyone's normal patterns." He nodded towards them. "Em and Merc fight like they normally do, so I didn't have to worry about them, and you're always ready to take advantage of their confusion and disunity."**

**That was **_**shockingly **_**accurate.**

**"So, I just had to build up troops in Menagerie, that'll cut you off as you engage the two of them." He finished with a laugh.**

**The dark-haired woman scanned over the board, eyes widening in realization. She turned back to her husband, putting on her best scandalized look.**

**"My knight, you'd rout me from behind?"**

Everyone suddenly needed a drink, so, as one, they began to drink some conveniently placed water bottles (or Coffee for Ozpin.)

**The blond smirked and took a sip of his wine. "Well, it certainly wouldn't be the first time."**

_***SPURT!***_

_***SPIT!***_

_***GAG!***_

_***COUGH! COUGH! COUGH!***_

Was the collective sounds of the theatre as water rained down and minds grinded to a halt.

**He'd been wrong. THAT was Cinder's best scandalized look.**

**"JAUNE ARC!" She roared, sending the man into a laughing fit.**

**Holy shit, she was blushing. He was pretty sure he could die happy now. He turned to Em, to find her jaw on the floor. It was too much, he broke down laughing.**

Once it had calmed down, Roman, Neo, Vernal, Qrow, Mercury, Sun, Neptune, Tyrian, Watts, Taiyang, Yang, Port, Marrow, Elm and Harriet began to laugh like there was no tomorrow.

Others either collected themselves or were still a blushing mess. Saphron kept her head buried at her wife's chest, hoping to drown out the sight and sound of her brother's innocence dying out by that scarlet woman.

"You go Jaune!" Yang cheered her fellow blond.

"Such *Cough.* such lewd behaviour." Weiss croaked out.

Cinder was seething at this point, not at the laughing… okay that played a huge part but at the notion that any man would be the dominant one, let alone Arc! She was a woman who was always in control, always on top.

Con' read her thoughts and laughed silently, imagining how Cinder would react if she ever discovered AO3 and searched "Knightfall" or "ArcFall".

**"Hell yeah Jaune! Now help me out, bros before-"**

**Amber eyes snapped back to him, silencing him.**

Those laughing before immediately clamped up at what could be described as an Omen of death.

Some would describe it as if the dead rose from beyond the grave to lay claim on the living.

Others would call it Mercury's greatest Fuck up.

And Mercury? Well he was more fucked than a man who was riding a see-saw after attaching a foot long dildo to its seat.

**"What was that, Mercury?" She whispered dangerously.**

**"I-I, uh…" He looked Em for help, only to find her quickly scooting away from what she assumed would shortly become the 'splash zone.'**

**"Mercury." Cinder hissed. "Finish the sentence."**

**He could swear he could already**_** feel **_**the heat coming from across the table.**

**"What?" He tried weakly.**

**"The sentence, Mercury. Bros before **_**what**_**?"**

**Of all the ways he'd thought he'd go, he could safely say that he didn't expect it to be over a board game. Gods but it was getting hot. He could almost see the flickering flames-**

**"Holy shit!" Jaune cried out. "The game's on fire!"**

**His blond messiah. He jumped to help the man bat the flames out, carefully avoiding Cinder's gaze.**

"Oh thank you Gods."

"And who said you were safe from _ME_ Mercury?"

"Oh Fuck you Gods."

**"It's monopoly all over again." Jaune muttered. "How does this keep happening?"**

**His dumb, incredibly dense, blond savior.**

**They'd said their goodbyes shortly after that, with Jaune apologizing for the panic, and assuring them that it has probably for the best anyway.**

**"Cindy seems like she needs a minute to cool off. See you guys next month right? She might not show it, but Cindy loves these things. I think it's an outlet for her aggression or something."**

**"Yeah, sure bro. Wouldn't miss it."**

**Cinder Fall was a monster, Mercury Black knew this. He also knew she wasn't one you refused, and he was pretty sure that that extended to her husband as well.**

**He sighed with relief as Jaune closed the door. Made it out alive.**

**"You're so fucking dumb." His partner offered helpfully.**

**"Shut the hell up Em."**

**"Oh, don't care about a 'hoe's' opinion?"**

**And so they walked back down the street, bickering the whole way, completely oblivious to the pair of pink and brown eyes watching them leave the monster's house.**

Cinder gained a dark look as she turned to Roman. "And just what is your personal call girl doing near my home?" she demanded.

"Hey whoa, who says I have anything to do with this?" He raised his hands in peace while his face was plastered with a shit eating grin.

"Because you control her." She gritted out.

"One, I don't control her, she does what she likes. I just manage to make hurting my enemies something she likes to do. Second, why so defensive? You afraid for blondie or something?" he smirked

Cinder was interrupted as the projection started up again, but not before casting a glare at the ginger criminal.

**0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0 **

**CHAPTER 4**

**Cinder Fall was a monster.**

**Roman Torchwick knew this. **

"Ah finally, my time to shine." Roman soaked in the spotlight while Neo playfully clapped for him.

**He also knew that, as his mother so eloquently put it back in the day, she was not a woman to be fucked with. He knew this from first-hand experience, watching as a few of his men went up in literal flames after he told them to, 'get this bitch out of my way,' during their first meeting.**

Cinder smirked as she remembered he fear in everyone's eyes after they witnessed the burning of flesh and the screams of agony.

**Better words could have been chosen. He could swear he could still smell them at times.**

**After that, they'd begun a mutually beneficial partnership, which is what his pride allowed him to call being allowed to live, so long as he carried out her every whim.**

**But things were about to change! Now, thanks to the little minx that was Neo, he knew one of his 'partner's' secrets, and as the former owner of one of Vale's oldest and most valuable manuscripts collections once told him, 'knowledge is power.' He'd made the counterargument that guns were power, and the owner had chosen to concede the debate.**

"I don't know if I should be shocked by this level of foolishness or smack myself for thinking you wouldn't be dumb enough to try such a thing." Cinder seethed with a calm face.

**He watched as the secret strolled casually along the street, not a care in the world. He looked down to his long-time partner.**

**"That him Neo?"**

**He received a happy bob of the head in return.**

**Well, time to do some old fashion investigation. "If you would be so kind my lady."**

**Neo tittered silently, as she wrapped them in a cloak of illusion, making them invisible to all those around them. A fun side effect he had discovered to this particular trick was the looks on people's faces when a ghost seemingly shoved them and told them to fuck off. It really was about the little joys in life.**

**They tailed the guy for around an hour, and as they did, something became disturbingly clear. The guy was connected.**

"Connected? As in shady wise connected?" Blake questioned.

**Not the kind of connected like people who thought they were a big deal were, where a club owner or two knew your name, but **_**truly**_**, street level connected. The damn blond couldn't seem to take more than three steps before someone called out or ran up to him, offering him samples of food, flowers, or beer, and he knew them all **_**by name**_**.**

"Oh so thug like connected then." Terra concluded.

"You never know. Maybe they're just nice." Saphron chimed in.

_**Fuck. This guy was connected AND liked. **_**Roman's mind raced, trying to figure out if he recognized him from somewhere. How would someone be operating in HIS city, and at such a deep level, without him knowing his name? It left a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach. One that got worse when he saw who the man stopped to talk to next.**

**Big Daddy Bane was so named because he was fucking big. The man must have been at least 6'5", if not taller, and was a veritable wall of muscle.**

"Eh. Hazel could kick his ass still." Mercury shrugged.

**He WAS East side drug trade, and had the firepower to keep it that way. He was always dressed in the tackiest white suit Roman had ever seen, there was an art to suits after all, but he dared someone to say it to his face. Nobody that wanted to stay breathing very long ran their mouth to Big Daddy. But now? The man looked positively nervous.**

"So Jaune can make a towering man of muscle and drug lord nervous. I feel like our other versions should be taking the blond along with us when we need to… convince people to cooperate." Merc' smirked.

"Oh yeah and have the wannabe hero run away the second he realises his wife and friends aren't nice people and are murderers instead." Emerald deadpanned at the assassin.

_**Who the hell is this guy!?**_

**"Hey Bane! How's it going?" The blond greeted cheerily.**

**Roman took note of that, no 'Big Daddy,' no title. He had the power in this relationship.**

"He just said hello." Sun shrugged.

Despite his sheltered life, Whitely knew the power titles held and to address others by name without said titles, showed either a powerful alliance or disrespect. He could somewhat see why the thug was concerned.

**The giant shuffled nervously, pulling at the collar of his shirt. "Fine, just fine Jaune. How are you?"**

_**Jaune. So, that's his name, huh?**_

**The blond nodded. "Doing good!" He leaned in and grinned at the larger man. "How's the book? You all caught up?"**

**His eyes widened. This guy was shaking down Bane!**

"Im asking him a question." Jaune gave Roman a 'are you serious?' look.

"Exactly! You're asking a drug lord questions! Most would tell you to shut the fuck up or just cap you for even talking to him." Roman gestured to the screen.

**Bane's shoulders slumped as he stared at the ground. "No." He sighed.**

**Jaune tsked. "This is the second week in a row!"**

**"I know, I know, I just need a little bit more time!" The mountain of a man begged.**

**This was bad, real bad. Big Daddy controlled a significant amount of the city's less-than-legal gambling operations in addition to the drug trade. If this guy not only had access to his books, but was able to take money from the man, he was a force to be reckoned with. Roman leaned in, anxious to see how the newcomer handled failure.**

**The young man laughed. "Hey, don't worry about it! I know you'll get all caught up before next week. I trust you."**

**Roman felt a chill run down his spine. Of all the reactions that he'd expected, that definitely wasn't one of them. To be so forgiving, to have the power to be so forgiving, was a powerful message. It meant that the money didn't matter to him, it was just a token of submission, and he could continue operations...with or without Big Daddy. And that last line? 'I trust you.' That spoke volumes. He wasn't worried about Bane going anywhere, because there was nowhere to run.**

"What the fu-! Nah, im done asking questions." Jaune slumped in his seat.

**The giant let out a sigh of relief. "Thanks for understanding."**

**"Of course. You have any more tournaments coming up? I'm trying to get Merc back out there."**

_**Dammit! He was into the underground fight circuit too? How vast was this asshole's reach!?**_

"More dancing really, but from my other has told me, I still kick ass!" Mercury boasted while others shook their heads.

**He growled as he motioned for Neo to follow him back down the street into an alley. He had one more source he wanted to check before he unleashed the big guns. He pulled out his scroll and hurriedly dialed the familiar number, tapping his foot impatiently as it rang. A man with dark hair and a beard answered the phone a few moments later.**

"Hey, it's the guy from that club I traaaaa…" Yang cut herself off as she remembered just who was a couple seats away.

Taiyang caught on though. "Yang." He drew out the name, "What did you do?"

"Nothing." She avoided I contact.

"Yang. What did you do?"

"Nothiiiiing-Ah!" she said it like a bratty teen.

"Yang! What did you do!?"

"I trashed his club okay!?" she finally caved in.

"…." Tai was silent as Yang cringed at the stare he gave her. He opened his mouth as she ducked her head down, preparing for the embarrassing scolding that was to come.

"… now don't you feel better?" he smiled as he made her admit her past deeds.

"Wait what?"

"Is that it?!" Summer exclaimed at the lack of punishment.

"Im off the hook?" Yang felt hope bubbling inside her.

"Oh hell no, I just haven't had enough time to properly express my rage and make up a proper punishment." Tai replied with a smile as Yang slumped down and Summer smiled in relief.

**"What do you want Roman?"**

**He tsked. "Hey to you too Junior. I need information on a Jaune."**

**"Roman, you know we have a policy against kissing and telling."**

**He rolled his eyes. "Not that kind of John you idiot, a guy named Jaune. Tall, young, blond hair."**

**The man hummed. "Yeah, I know him."**

**"And?"**

**"What's it worth to you?"**

**He groaned. "What do you want?"**

**"The city cops are starting to sniff around again…"**

**"I'll take care of it. Jaune. Now."**

**He large man sighed. "Not much to tell honestly. He's a good guy, friends with the girls. Did freelance work taking care of some leaks and rats for us a while back."**

_**Shit, the guy had gotten his hands dirty? That made him even more dangerous.**_

"He means actual rats and water leaks doesn't he?" Roman dropped his face into his hands while Neo patted him on the back in comfort.

'Oh, so now he's using those slutty twins to keep him company.' Cinder couldn't help the feeling of jealously of her husband being around other women, those harlots should stay away from what was hers.

**"How long ago, and for how long?"**

**Junior stroked his chin. "Over a year ago for sure. He wasn't at it for too long, maybe six months to a year?"**

_**Damn it! Who rose through the ranks that fast? Soldier to don in a few years? This was bad, real bad.**_

**"Why are you asking after Jaune anyway? He's a friend of the-."**

_**Shit.**_

**"Thanks Junior." He cut the man off as he hung up the phone.**

**Who didn't this Jaune have in his pocket? He turned to the one reliable source of info he had.**

**"Neo, you're sure you saw this guy at the house that Cinder was at?"**

**She nodded.**

**"And the two brats left before he did?"**

**She signed at him.**

**"What do you mean 'he didn't leave'? What was he doing there?"**

**She shrugged, tapped her finger on her chin in thought and then lit up.**

**"Got something?"**

**She nodded excitedly, then made a circle with her index finger and thumb on one hand, and began thrusting the index finger of her other hand through vigorously.**

Many blushed at the lewd sign language the mute displayed so casually.

**He rolled his eyes. "If he's banging the fire bitch, then I'll eat my damn hat."**

"Would you like your hat rare or cooked Roman?" Cinder mocked.

"Oh, you gonna make me eat my hat 'cause he's actually banging you?" he sneered.

"Oh no, im making you eat that hat for the 'fire bitch' comment." She smiled evilly. "Though ill make you eat it again for that assessment, after you either ingested it or crapped it out." She promised. "Your choice."

**She grinned evilly at that.**

**"Find that shit funny do you? Well, why don't you go find out for us? There's an ice cream sundae in it for you if you find anything good."**

**Her eyes widened in delight, before she shot him a thumbs up, and seemingly blinked out of existence.**

_**Well mystery man, let's see if you can handle Neo.**_

**Neo was a Monster.**

**She knew this. She'd certainly been told it enough. Usually by someone whose eyes were wide with fear and screaming at the top of their lungs. Fond of labels, were the soon to be deceased. In truth though, she'd suspected it sometime much earlier on in her life. There'd been other monsters back then, ones that decided to prey on her. She'd decided she didn't like that, not at all. Several corpses later, she'd established a mental hierarchy of sorts. There were monsters, and then there were Monsters.**

**And Neo? She was a Monster.**

**However, she was a Monster that enjoyed being entertained. Roman was entertaining, and one of the few people that weren't openly terrified of her. So, she'd adopted him. **

"Wait. You adopted me?" Roman asked the mute who nodded before she texted him.

'What? Did you really think _you _adopted_ me?_' she smiled at him.

Roman looked at her for a second before nodding. "Fair play."

**She was pretty sure he thought it was the other way around, but he could get confused like that. They had a well-defined relationship, he provided the entertainment, and she fought off all the would-be monsters. It had worked out perfectly so far.**

**Which is why it was so frustrating when Fire Bitch had sashayed her way into their lives.**

**Fire Bitch was a Monster, one that she begrudgingly admitted was deserving of a big-ass "M," and it made Neo nervous. She HATED being nervous.**

**So now, with the chance to strike back at the woman in sight? Neo was ecstatic. All she had to do was pump this guy for information. And if there was one thing that she was good at, it was pumping...wait, nope. She was good at getting people to talk...ironically.**

**She found him chatting up a balding old man, selling cabbages of all things, at a street stall. She was far more interesting than cabbages in her not-so-humble opinion, so this should be easy. Just waltz up, flash a smile, maybe flash a little more, get Blondie to start talking. Easy peas-**

**"Oh Gods, it's you!"**

**Or, the cabbage-man could recognize her, that could happen too. Did they really shake this guy down recently? Times really were lean around here. She mentally shrugged. Oh well, time for option 2 - intimidation.**

Oh yeah, Neo liked option 2 very much. Time to make this blond piss his pants like many have before him.

**Blondie looked back and forth between her and the cabbage-man, clearly confused.**

**"Friend of yours?" He asked the cabbage-man.**

**That was her cue. She gracefully hopped up onto the counter of the stall and leered at the owner, a wicked smile on her lips.**

_**Yes cabbage-man, tell him who I am.**_

**The man was sweating bullets, eyes frantically searching for an exit from the situation. He licked his lips nervously.**

**"I-I uh…" He trailed off as she leaned in, her smile widening.**

**Then something happened that caught her off guard. Blondie laughed. Not a fake laugh, a nervous laugh, but a full on, belly laugh.**

Neo was stunted at that, this… wasn't supposed to go down like this.

**"So, this is the competition, huh? I'd worried if I were you Thomas, she seems feisty, and no offense, but she's a lot better looking than you."**

**The cabbage-man stared at Blondie with eyes wide with fear, but the man's grin held. He wasn't intimidated in the slightest. This man wasn't afraid of monsters, or at least pretended not to be...that made him interesting.**

**Blondie turned his gaze to her, chuckling as he held out a hand. "Name's Jaune Arc. Short, sweet, rolls of the tongue, ladies love it."**

**She stared at his hand in shock for a minute, before signing at him sarcastically.**

**'Do they though?'**

**'Sorry, force of habit.'**

Neo blinked suddenly at the unexpected response, she turned to the Jaune of her world and signed.

'You can speak in signs?' she gestured.

He smiled before responding in kind. 'Yep, a neat trick when you come across someone who needs it and for silently talking behind my mom's back, oh and for stealth missions.'

'Oh, you are interesting. Keep this up and I'll…' she then followed along with several more gestures and a wink.

While others didn't know what was said, they can tell it must have been saucy from the red hue Jaune suddenly emitted as he stayed silent.

Sun however had a serious question for Neptune, "If someone with a missing limb uses sign language, is that an accent or a speech impediment?"

**Her eyes widened as his hands moved through the signs. He caught her surprise and laughed.**

**"Something me and my sisters used to do for fun. Comes in handy." He winked at her as threw out the pun.**

**Ok, scratch that, Blondie had just moved up from interesting to entertaining. That was rare air.**

**She clapped her hands together in excitement. Back to option 1 it was!**

**She hopped off the counter of the stand and leaned into him, smirking in appreciation at his boldness, as she entered what people kept telling her was considered their 'personal space.' It didn't make much sense to her, she always found it much easier to get personal once you were inside that space.**

**He chuckled as her looked down at her. "Like that one? You'd be one of the first."**

**Oh, she intended to be. Gods he was tall. That's ok, the height difference tended to matter less when you weren't vertical anymore.**

"Okay im not liking where this is going." Saphron said.

Neo caught her eye before she signed to the other Arc. Might as well see if this one could also "speak" her language. 'Oh don't worry, I'll take good care of him, I'll get him a leash with his name on it and everything as long as he is a good boy.' She finished.

Terra had to hold her wife back from assaulting the mute who silently chuckled.

**"Cindy hates puns. Or at least she says she does." He leaned a bit closer and whispered conspiratorially. "I think she's secretly a fan."**

**Cindy? That reminded her of something. Was she supposed to be doing something? Probably wasn't important. What was important, was that he was talking about another girl. She threw him a pout to show him what she thought about that.**

**He laughed again. "Wow, now you really remind me of her."**

**Playing hard to get, huh? Well, she could take care of that. She wrapped them in her Semblance as she reached for the top button of her blouse. Time for a very public, private show.**

Cinder was prepared to treat Neo like the ice-cream midget she was and _melt her_. For even daring to touch _what was hers!_

Though she couldn't deny that Neo was indeed attractive, this was an opportunity to see how far a man's loyalty stretched. She didn't have much hope though. Why should she? Men were animals, seeking out the best or easiest woman to claim/conquer before they find some fresh flesh to pleasure themselves with. Men were just like that.

Neo smirked at the screen, so what if she was also showing off to an audience. She had a body worth showing off, why hide it and not use it when it suited her?

She was gonna have that blond cutie wrapped around her finger in mere seconds.

**She wasn't sure what surprised her most out of what happened next. It might be the speed at which his hand shot out and caught her wrist, it might be how gentle but firm his grip was, it very well could have been the genuine apology in his eyes when he spoke.**

**"I-I'm sorry, I didn't mean-" He shook his head and held up his left hand, ring proudly in place. "I'm married."**

Both Cinder and Neo were certainly surprised by Jaune's actions.

Cinder didn't know how to act. After all wasn't this an opportunity for her husband to indulge in something new without his wife knowing? Did he fear that Cinder would find out? Did he think Neo wasn't worth it? That she wasn't good enough?

'Or.' A strange voice sounded off from the back of her head, 'He truly loves you and the reason you see men as animals is because you've never met someone like Arc and was never shown true loyalty?' Cinder didn't know whether to ignore the voice or actually listen to it.

**But, what she was almost certain surprised her most, was the viper that suddenly appeared at the end of the man's wrist and struck out at her, sending her flying back onto her rear. She reached for her blade, but the viper had been replaced by a familiar face. A very annoying familiar face.**

**Crop-top stood beside Blondie, looking down at her and trying to be intimidating. As if, Crop-top has a little "m" monster for sure. A clam-jamming little "m" monster at that.**

**"Are you ok, Jaune?" She asked.**

**He looked confused. "Yeah, of course Em." His eyes shot back to her. "Are **_**you**_** ok? Did you hurt yourself?"**

**Her eyes flicked better the two, and suddenly the pieces fell into place. The ring, Crop-top, Cindy. Her eyes widened. He really **_**wasn't**_** afraid of Monsters.**

"No, he just hasn't seen the monsters yet." Jaune muttered to himself darkly. Cinder managed to hear it though and for some reason, that gave off a strange feeling in her chest.

She needed to consult Salem immediately after this! There had to be something wrong with herself, Cinder was never like this.

She made herself cold and ruthless, never to be shackled by such fragile and worthless emotions, to live by her strength alone, to take power whenever she could. If whoever held that power before could not stop Cinder from taking it, then they never deserved to have it in the first place.

She was a Monster and she prided herself in being able to have such a title.

But why did the notion feel… bad to have?

**He was VERY entertaining.**

**Blondie offered her a hand up, which she accepted. "Sorry about that Neo, this is Em-"**

**"We know each other." Crop-top cut him off.**

**He tilted his head. "Hiking buddies?"**

_**Hiking buddies?**_

**Crop-top snorted. "No, Neo's more of a mime enthusiast."**

_**Oh this bitch.**_

**He hummed. "I guess I can see it." He snapped his fingers in excitement. "Hey, I've got an idea! Neo's single too, and looking to meet some guys. You two should go clubbing together, make new friends."**

"He is between two deadly assassins and is trying to make nice with them? It's like watching someone try to tame a couple of Beowolves." Harriet snorted.

**Trying to make alliances, huh? That was Roman's thing, she wouldn't be caught dead with Crop-top.**

**The tanned girl frowned in agreement. "I don't think we'd get along. Neo always likes putting on more of a show than I do."**

Suddenly Neo's image was blurred, from the neck down as if it were being censored.

"What the? What's with the screen?" Sun asked. Not knowing why it was acting up.

"I think it's broken." Nora guessed.

Emerald suddenly chuckled as she knew what was wrong.

"Something to add Em?" Mercury asked.

"Well if I know me, then I know what I've done and the reason the midget is being censored."

**And with that, Neo was naked. Well, she wasn't really, but that's what Crop-top wanted her to see.**

"Ah." Mercury understood.

"Aw, we're missing the show." Neptune then felt something collide with the back of his head, making him bite his tongue. He turned to see Neo with another bowl of ice cream in hand and held it threateningly, Weiss also had her weapon back in hand somehow and was spinning the chamber of her weapon while she gave him a cold look. The entire female audience glaring at the blue haired ladies' man in disgust.

He meekly turned back to the screen after managing to not wet himself from the wave of death that rammed into him like a tidal wave.

Many of the women gave Neo appreciative and respectful nods and smiles who blew a kiss back. Hey she may not care if people saw what she had to offer but that was only when she decided to put on a show.

_**Oh this very dead bitch. She wanted to play rough? Ok then, she'd give her a show**_**. She cloaked the two of them in her Semblance, hiding them from the rest of the world, and cracked her knuckles.**

**Jaune stared between the still image of the two girls staring each other down and tsked. "Em, be nice."**

**"I'll be nice Jaune, I promise." Crop-top said slowly, trying to keep up a strong front as Neo approached. "Can you go find Merc? He's back down the way I came, looking for you."**

**The blond sighed as he started back down the street. "Fine, just make sure everyone stays in one piece."**

_**No promises Blondie.**_

**Roman watched as the blond haired man peeled off from the two girls, hearing his last minute instructions to keep the battle contained. As much as he hated to admit it, the guy was smart. He knew he couldn't keep two wild cards like Neo and Emerald contained, so he'd let them have their spat, so long as it didn't disrupt business.**

**It was exactly what he would have done.**

**He growled as he watched the man walk back down towards the direction of Cinder's other, silver haired dog. He was tired of being a spectator. He was tired of listening to how much everyone liked this guy on the street. Of how he was making moves on HIS territory. It was time for a face to face.**

**"Hey Jaune!" He called out, causing the blond to whip around with a confused look on his face. Good, he was off balance.**

**The blond squinted. "Do I know you?"**

**Roman grit his teeth. This blond bastard, pretending that he didn't know **_**exactly **_**who he was talking to!**

"While I understand that Mr Arc doesn't exactly know of others shady history, why is it he can't identify a well-known and heavily wanted criminal?" Ironwood shook his head.

**He reeled himself in. He had to play this cool. He laughed and held out a hand as he approached. "Maybe not. I'm Roman Torchwick, and this is MY Street." **_**AND my city.**_

**The blond considered him for a moment. "Are you sure?" He pointed down the way. "That corner belongs to Bane." His finger shifted. "That stall to Thomas." Again the finger moved. "That-"**

"Is he really this literate or is he purposely pissing him off?" Coco asked though she should really know at this point.

**"Yes, I suppose that's**_** technically **_**true." This bastard wanted to play hardball, huh? "But, I'm something of an entrepreneur around here. Most of these businesses work through me...if they want to remain profitable." Time to play his card. "I believe we have a mutual acquaintance by the way, one with a fiery temper."**

**He watched as the blond's eyes widened in realization that his secret was out, that he'd been-**

"Finally the dumbass knows that he is talking to the man, the myth, the Legend! Ro-

**"Broman!" The man cried out excitedly. "That's who you are!"**

"FUCK A DUCK!" Roman shouted in annoyance and outrage.

_**What?**_

**"What?"**

**The blond laughed. "Oh, sorry about that, Cindy's told me about you, but I've never seen a picture."**

**"I, uh-"**

**Jaune clapped the man on the shoulder. "Sorry about Cindy, she can be a handful."**

**He had so many questions**_**. **_**Broman? Cindy? Was this guy touching him?**

**The blond leaned in with a smile. "But just between me and you, I hear you've been giving her trouble too. Do her husband a favor and try to get along, huh? You know...be a bro."**

"Oh this mother-!"

**He seethed. This son of a bitch thought he could big-time him on his own street?**

**His grip tightened on his cane. He'd show him how Roman Torchwick had risen through the ranks. Then it hit him-**

**Her husband?**

**His eyes widened. This guy was **_**married**_** to the fire bitch? More than that, if he'd never even met the guy, did that make him the power behind the throne?**

**His eyes shifted from the blond's easy smile to look around the street. There were people staring at them. There were people staring at them with**_** fear**_** in their eyes. Roman felt a chill run down his spine as the man squeezed his shoulder.**

**"Can you do that for me, Broman?"**

**He swallowed. "I-"**

"Why am _I_ nervous?!"

**"Jaune?" The man shifted his attention to the silver haired newcomer approaching them.**

**"Merc! How's it going man? I was just talking to our friend Broman!"**

**The mercenary's eyes darted between the two. "...Yeah, Broman."**

**Roman's heart sank as it all became clear. He hadn't wanted this conversation - Jaune had. It's why he'd had Emerald pair off with Neo. It's why he'd walked down the street in broad daylight, just asking for him to make his move. He'd had Mercury waiting in the wings the whole time. Now he was outnumbered on a street that may or may not be his anymore.**

Roman started to silently cry into his hands. "No… he's just a fucking idiot." He pathetically sobbed.

_**Fuck.**_

**He let out a breath he didn't know he'd been holding as Neo joined them, popping into existence. His eyes flicked up to the blond. The bastard didn't even have the decency to look surprised.**

**"Oh hey Neo! Didn't see you come up. You and Em sort things out?"**

**His partner gave the man a happy nod.**

**Jaune smiled. "Good. I'm glad we can all be friends."**

**Roman glanced to the side as Emerald shuffled up to them, an obvious hitch in her step.**

**"You ok Em?" The blond asked.**

_**Did nothing shake this guy?**_

**"Yeah." She huffed. "Must've pulled something hiking."**

_**Hiking?**_

**He didn't have time to think about it, as the two warriors took their places at Jaune's side, leaning into him, making sure that he understood what would happen with a word from the blond.**

"No you god damn moron. He's just too dense to understand what's going on."

**He shuffled nervously. He didn't want this fight, not now at least. There were just too many unanswered questions. Thankfully, Mercury saved him.**

**"Jaune, I think we need to go bro. Cinder wanted to talk to you."**

**The man nodded to his lieutenant, before turning back to Roman.**

**"Sorry we didn't get more of a chance to talk, but you know how it is. Can't keep a pretty lady waiting." Jaune finished with a wink.**

_**A wink. He fucking winked at him.**_

**He nodded back slowly. "Yeah...we'll catch up some other time."**

**The blond smiled warmly, too warmly. "I look forward to it. And please, remember what I said."**

**Roman tried to keep his knees from shaking till the man had turned and started down the street.**

**Neo was watching a much different scene play out.**

**She'd rushed back to Roman as soon as she'd finished teaching Crop-top all about the differences between big "M's" and little "m's." She'd found him cornered by Blondie and Stilts, looking shook.**

**She thought she could understand, Blondie wasn't an everyday kinda guy. He was dangerous.**

"No, he's not. It's the equivalent of a happy golden retriever being surrounded by blood thirsty wolves and thinking the retriever is the most dangerous because it isn't dead yet by said wolves." Roman needed something strong to drink right now. Thankfully a bottle of whiskey popped by his arm rest to which he snatched up and chugged.

**At least, that's was she'd thought before she'd seen the way that Crop-top and Stilts closed in on him. To Roman, she'd imagined it looked like they were closing ranks. But to her, someone who read body language as a way of life? She saw something else. They were**_** afraid **_**for him. They were protecting him.**

**None of it made any sense. Was Blondie not afraid of Monsters, or did he not even see them?**

**She started laughing as they walked away, she couldn't help it, Blondie was just too entertaining.**

**Roman shot her a worried look, and she smiled up at him. Sure, she could tell him, but…**

**What would be the fun in that?**

"God fucking damn it Neo." All he got was silent laughter from his partner.

**0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0 **

**CHAPTER 5**

**Cinder Fall was a Monster.**

**She knew this. But sometimes, she liked to forget.**

**Her current situation made that somewhat difficult. She 'sat' at an illusionary table, projected by some strange new Grimm, surrounded by Salem's other lieutenants, tapping her foot impatiently. She had places to be. She was going to be late...again.**

Ozpin straightened in his seat before realising this was before the fall of Beacon, so there may not be much information to take from this, though he kept an ear out in-case Salem indulged her plans she had after Beacon falls.

**"Are we boring you Cinder?" Watts drawled from across the table...the smug bastard.**

**"Only you Watts." She shot back.**

**He hummed. "Perhaps you have better things to do? Like fail to obtain a Maiden's powers?"**

**"I forgot you were so accomplished in that regard. Honestly, I forget most of your accomplishments...it's almost like there's a distinct lack of them."**

**"Oooohhh, sick burn!" Tyrian grinned from across the table, before erupting in laughter at his own pun.**

Yang didn't like it when people she didn't like indulged in one of her favourite past times, pun making, so she gave an appropriate response. "…Kill him!" she yelled.

_**Gods I hate puns. **_**Jaune was the only exception to this rule. Jaune was the only exception to several rules.**

"Like being on top. AHEM!" Mercury whispered between several coughs.

**Watts scoffed. "At least I'm not behind schedule."**

**She raised an eyebrow. "Good for you. I suppose that makes two of us then."**

**He balked. "But, I thought-"**

**"Best to leave the thinking to others dear, you know it got you kicked out of Atlas."**

"Daaaaaamn!" Sun and Neptune leaned back as they shouted that.

**"You bitch!" He snarled.**

**"Children." A soft, but terrifying voice cut them off. Cinder's heart pounded within her chest as Salem coolly glanced over them. She may have been a Monster, but she was pretty sure that woman was the Devil.**

**"There's no need to bicker. It's unproductive, and I abhor the unproductive." Her gaze fell to Cinder. "Now my young friend, why don't you tell me about your recent success?"**

**She straightened in her chair. "My Queen, the man I employ, Roman, has succeed in matching our quotas, despite the earlier delays."**

**The red-eyed woman nodded in appreciation. "Good. How did this come to be?"**

**"He's been unusually motivated since last week my Queen. He seems to be afraid of what will happen if fails me. Fails you." She quickly corrected.**

"And Arc proves his usefulness once more." Cinder laughed.

**Salem hummed. "Fear that I'm sure you put there. Excellent work Cinder, you prove your worth yet again."**

**"Thank you, my Queen."**

**"You do seem hurried through my dear. What has you in such a rush?"**

**She swallowed. "I have an important meeting with a partner that I can't afford to miss...again."**

"Ooh! Is it date night?" Kali asked teasingly.

**The ghostly woman nodded slowly. "Very well, you are excused my dear."**

**"Thank you my-"**

**"But remember this, I will not tolerate failure. The clock is ticking, my dark Maiden."**

**Her eyes met the floor as she bowed her head. "Of course my Queen."**

**With a simple wave of her hand, Salem cut the feed.**

**Cinder let out a sigh of relief. She couldn't be late again…**

**Date night was too important, and it was her turn to set it up.**

"Called it." the feline mother cheered.

**She heard two knocks come from the door behind her.**

**"Enter." She quickly responded, spinning around in her chair to see Emerald enter, a nervous look on her face and a bundle in her arms. "What's our status?" She demanded.**

"For what?" was the question.

"Maybe it's about trying to locate the previous Maiden." Pyrrha theorised.

"Or maybe it's about the attack on Beacon, making sure everything is ready for such a strike." Weiss thought.

**"Promise you won't get mad?"**

**She shot her subordinate a look. "Emerald, let's be realistic."**

**The green haired girl sighed. "I found a 5-star restaurant on a few hours notice..."**

"It's about the date." Ren deadpanned as some dropped in exasperation.

**"Excellent." She was a woman with standards after all. Jaune could pick a greasy spoon when it was his turn.**

**"...And it's Big Daddy Bane's."**

**They sat in silence for a moment.**

**"Emerald, do you think that Mercury will be able to identify you at the morgue? What with all the burns I mean."**

**"You gave me an hour! Because you forgot!" The girl complained.**

"It's weird seeing her be so casual with you." Or in general Mercury thought.

**She huffed. "I never forget, I just become distracted."**

**She could have sworn Emerald rolled her eyes at that. Maybe discipline was becoming an issue in their little unit. "Big Daddy is the only one that'd give us a reservation, and that's because he likes Jaune. Besides, Jaune will be ecstatic that he gets to visit his friend."**

**Well, that was true she supposed. Though, she'd prefer to have his full attention.**

**She sighed. "Very well. What of the rest of the evening?"**

**"You're going to see a movie."**

**She hummed. "Trite, but classic." Her eyes widened. "It's not a dog movie is it? Jaune was bawling at the one where the dog reincarnates over and over again." SHE hadn't cried. She'd simply had an allergic reaction to Vale's pollens. Gods but that dog reminded her of Jaune.**

Que quiet snickering at the thought of the powerful and deadly Cinder Fall crying over a dog film, though Ruby was the same, she could never get through a film like that without shedding some tears.

**Emerald winced. "No...it's a Spruce Willis movie."**

**She groaned. "Do you hate me Emerald?"**

**"Jaune loves Spruce Willis!" She comforted. "It's his favourite!"**

**"My husband has terrible taste."**

"He's not that bad!" Jaune defended his favourite film star.

**"You're preaching to the choir sister." Emerald muttered under her breath.**

**"What was that?"**

**The tanned girl snapped to attention. "I said I've got Mercury keeping Jaune distracted!"**

**"Good, what are they doing?"**

**"Um...playing catch." The girl said slowly.**

**That caught her attention. "The children's game?"**

**Emerald shrugged. "Merc's been weirdly insistent on playing it with Jaune for some reason. Something about making up for lost time."**

"Oh that's bullshit! Like I'd ever do something so lame." Mercury crossed his arms.

"Oh calm down you idiot." Emerald said.

"No! Im getting tired of this horse shit about me wanting that idiot as a father figure."

"Come on, it's not the worst thing to want." Jaune spoke up.

"Oh yeah!?"

"Well I mean, I doubt I can compare stories with your dad, seeing how you're other is reacting I guess he's a douche bag."

"I killed him myself."

"So yeah a douche bag." Jaune nodded. "While my life wasn't as hard as yours, I certainly would have liked if my dad was supportive about me being a huntsman and actually help me."

"Still better than having someone beat the lessons into ya."

"Fair enough, maybe you'd like to talk about it more… over a game of catch?" Jaune offered.

"…I'd like that." Mercury accepted with a weak glare and quiet voice.

**She sighed. "Well, I suppose it's not his emotional stability I picked him for. Do I have a dress?"**

**"Yes." The girl beamed as she unwrapped the package in her arms, revealing an elegant black dress. "What do you think?"**

**Her eyes flowed over the dress as the reached out to caress the fabric. "It's perfect."**

**"Thought you'd like it." Emerald stated proudly as she handed the dress over, waiting as she changed.**

**"How do I look?" She asked, giving a small spin and allowing the other girl to zip her up.**

**"You're going to knock him dead...metaphorically speaking of course." The green haired girl quickly amended.**

**She smiled to herself. "Excellent. Let's go then."**

**"Boss, wait." Emerald instructed, holding out one hand in front of her, as her other one fished in her pocket, emerging with a small gold ring. "Can't forget this."**

**She let out a sigh of relief as she slid it onto her hand. It wouldn't do to show up under-dressed.**

**"Thank you Emerald, you're a good friend."**

Emerald deflated a little at the notion of being just a friend.

**This Emerald however, lit up. "Wow, thank you-"**

**"Despite your sexual attraction to my husband."**

**She almost chuckled as the girl's face fell.**

**"I know it must have been hard for you." She continued. "Setting up what you might have imagined could have been your dream date with him. Maybe I will allow you to join us one night. For a birthday perhaps."**

"Woah!" Neptune laughed.

Sun gave Jaune a thumbs up and a nod. "My man." He got smacked by Blake.

**Emerald scowled. "His or mine? Who's this supposed to be a reward for?"**

**Her brow creased. "You have a birthday? Since when?"**

**The green haired girl sighed. "Since Jaune gave me one. Remember how upset he got when he found out that I didn't know when mine was? He demanded that we find a date. He chose May 10th, said that May was the month of Emeralds, and that-"**

**"-You were a ten." She tsked. "Yes, remarkably corny is my husband."**

**"It was kinda sweet."**

**"Yes, he is." She smirked. "I noticed you didn't say no."**

**The girl coloured. "I-I…"**

"You really need to stop falling in to her traps." Yang chuckled.

**She couldn't hold it in any longer, she began to snicker.**

**Emerald's eyes widened. "You're screwing with me!"**

**She was, wasn't she? She never used to play such games, not before Jaune. She couldn't figure out why for the life of her. It was a lot of fun.**

**"Well...not yet at least." She drawled.**

**The girl's jaw hit the floor.**

Laughter rang from the audience once more at this.

**Perhaps puns were permissible from time to time.**

**She felt a flutter in her stomach when she saw him standing at the entrance of the restaurant. There was nothing she could do to stop it, nor did she want to. He looked good.**

**He'd combed his hair, which was the first thing she'd noticed. The second was that he'd dressed for the occasion. Dark slacks led up to a white shirt, covered by a blue sports coat that she thought brought out his eyes. He'd even ditched those ridiculous boots that he always wore around. She knew he didn't like getting dressed up, his dates were always more adventurous, but he'd done it for her. It was one of the reasons she loved him.**

"Once again he clears up nicely." Coco whistled. "Hey Arc, wanna- Ow!" She rubbed her arm after Velvet pinched it. "Wanna explain bun-bun?"

"No using our friends as models, its how you nearly scared off Yatsu and Fox."

**"Gods you're beautiful."**

**That was another.**

**"My, my Mr. Arc, starting the smooth talk already?"**

**He grinned and held his arm out to her. "What can I say? I see a pretty lady, and I'm feeling lucky tonight."**

**She smiled back. "Think she's interested?"**

**"I'll let you know after dinner." He said as he held the door open for her, leading her inside.**

"Oh it's so cute seeing such an adorable couple flirt." Kali and Summer cooed.

**His face lit up when he saw who was manning the reception counter, and she internally sighed.**

_**Here we go.**_

**"Bane! How's it going, you old dog!"**

**The giant exploded in a laugh. "Jaune! Welcome! Who is this beautiful creature? Is this your mysterious wife I've heard so much about?"**

**She tsked at that. This low level dealer had no need to know of her existence, that was reserved for necessary evils - and wasn't there irony in that - like Roman. Still...it was nice to hear he talked about her.**

**"Yep, the one and only."**

**She'd better be.**

**The giant smirked and nudged Jaune with his elbow. "I can see why you're so interested in our book club, you need ideas. Might I recommend Book 4, Chapter 7, Scene 3?"**

Blake blushed at this while Kali giggled and Ghira sighed despite smiling at his gorgeous wife.

**She wasn't sure exactly what he was talking about, but from the way Jaune blushed, she could imagine.**

**"I assure you that my husband and I have active imaginations, thank you."**

"Soooo… what is their sex life like?"

"YANG!" many cried out at the shameless blonde.

"What? It was a genuine question and Blake? Don't act like you won't note down the answer to that." Said girl blushed at being called out.

"Easy, I'm clearly on top always." Cinder smirked.

"Well…" Con' spoke up.

"What? Tell me!" Yang seriously wanted more dirt and teasing info.

"Let's just say both are switches but if it comes to a coin toss to who's on top then sometimes Cinder is willing to use a double sided head coin and call tails." Both Jaune and Cinder were blushing madly in embarrassment as others laughed.

**Bane raised an eyebrow. "Fiery, isn't she?"**

**Jaune chuckled. "You have no idea."**

**The man laughed and clapped his hands together. "What brings you to our humble establishment?"**

**Her husband snorted. "Bane, if this is humble, I'm in trouble." He nodded towards her with a smile. "It's date night."**

**"Date night! Well then, we can't have you sit at an ordinary table, only the finest will do!" The giant turned and called to a hostess. "Coco! Take these fine people up to balcony, and see that they receive a bottle of our finest."**

"Wait, im in this? I work at a drug lord's restaurant?" Coco asked bewildered.

"Most likely unknowingly." Glynda assured.

**"Sure thing boss."**

**Cinder took in the young girl carefully, taking in her appearance and peering at Jaune for his reaction. She was certainly pretty enough, and she was forced to admit, not without a sense of fashion. But Jaune stared obliviously forward as the girl led them to their table, not giving her more than a passing glance.**

_**Good.**_

"I don't know if this is protective or Yandere territory." Illa said.

**It wasn't that she didn't trust Jaune. The man was loyal to a fault. But what she didn't trust, was literally any other human being alive. **

Cinder nodded at that.

**Experience had taught her that this was a wise choice. But, it didn't look like she'd have to worry about this one, who informed them that their server would be by shortly to take their order.**

**Jaune leaned across the table. "This is nice!"**

**She smiled. "I thought you'd like it. I spent a while picking it out." She'd 'hired' Emerald, so it counted.**

**He chuckled. "You know me too well. Also, tell Em I said thank you."**

**She balked. "How'd you know?"**

**He grinned. "I didn't. So, what'd she plan for us after this?"**

"He's good." Elm chuckled.

**She huffed. "Well, maybe nothing if you're going to be this insufferable."**

**"Awww, I was just teasing you. I wanna know!"**

**"I suppose it'll just have to be a surprise." It'd certainly been a surprise to her, not an hour before.**

**"You're mean." He joked.**

**"You have no-"**

**"Hi, I'm Velvet, I'll be your server."**

**Cinder's gaze flickered over to the young Faunus girl. Ok, this? This could be a problem. If there was something she'd learned about her knight, it was that he had a weakness for ears. **

Velvet blushed at this as Coco laughed. Blake felt her own ears twitch at Jaune's apparent love for ears.

**She had a pair in their closet at home…**

"And deeper into the bedroom we go!" Yang cheered.

…**which looked suspiciously like the ones atop this girl's head, which proved this to be true.**

**Her husband addressed the walking fetish. (**This made Velvet squeak)** "Hey Velvet, how are-"**

**"Say the line!" They heard Bane boom from across the restaurant.**

**She watched as the homewrecker sighed, her eyes finding the floor, before issuing 'the line.'**

**"Welcome to Big Daddy's...home of the Big D." She muttered.**

"Oh my god." Many laughed at this.

**"More enthusiasm!" Bane shouted.**

**"What's the Big D?" Jaune asked.**

**That was for her to know, and this flop-eared floozy to never find out.**

"Monty! I think you need to run while you can Vel'." Coco nudged her partner.

"The scary thing is she can kill me."

**"It's our specialty cocktail." The sex symbol explained.**

**"We'll take two." Jaune decided proudly.**

**The girl visibly cringed.**

**"So help me Velvet, you WILL ask the question!" Bane demanded.**

**She was honestly impressed with how small the tramp managed to make herself.**

**"May…" She swallowed. "May I inquire as to the size of your D?"**

The laughter grew in volume and quantity.

**She was definitely going to kill Emerald.**

**"The biggest. We're not driving." Jaune said with otherworldly confidence.**

**She'd do something respectful with the ashes, like throw them in the face of an orphan. Emerald would like that.**

**"I'll be back in just a minute." The nightwalker assured them, before practically bolting off.**

**"She seems nervous. Wonder if she's new?" Her knight observed.**

**She was NOT talking about Ms. Risqué Rabbit on date night. She scooted her chair closer to his, until they were side by side. Her hand...explored.**

"Whoa, getting feisty are we?" Kali remembered being so bold herself, hell she still was!

**"I'm not new, does that make me less exciting?"**

**He yelped, and she smirked. The night was back on track. Nothing could stop her now.**

**He laughed. "The moment I stop finding you exciting, I doubt I'll have a pulse."**

**That was probably truer than he knew.**

**"Good." She purred. "I think I might have an alteration to date night plans."**

**He raised an excited eyebrow. "Yeah?'**

**"Yes, what say we-"**

**A drink was placed before her. A gaudy, ridiculous drink that was both the colour blue, and in a 'D' shaped glass. She turned to tell the hoppy hooker that they'd be needing the check, and froze. Gone was the Velveteen Vixen, and in her place, something inexplicably worse.**

**Di-chromatic eyes winked back at her as the pink and brown girl passed Jaune his drink.**

**A flood of questions flowed through her mind. How? Why? Where was what's-her-name? Where would she hide this bitch's body?**

"Was I just killed off screen!?" Velvet yelled while Coco held her and glared at Neo who held their hands up in peace.

**"Oh hey Neo! Didn't know you worked here." Oh Gods, it got worse. How did Jaune know this harlot? Why was she staring him down like he was prey?**

**"You know each other?" She asked carefully.**

**"Huh? Oh yeah! Met her the other day when I ran into Broman. Nice guy by the way. I think she's in the same boat as Emerald." He whispered the last to her.**

**That was a very dangerous, very flammable boat to be in.**

**"You don't say? You know, I think I have to use the bathroom Jaune. I'm sure Neo will accompany me. You know, girls and bathrooms and all that." She said as she found her feet.**

"I feel like if they do then it's gonna turn into a bathroom brawl." Qrow joked and hoped for a fight.

"Bathroom about to get a paint job." Neptune winced at the thought.

**Neo promptly fell into her seat, and waved up at her, biding her farewell.**

'This bitch.' A certain maiden thought.

**Jaune chuckled nervously. "She's something else, right?"**

**She was about to be something else. Something much more on fire.**

**"I think maybe she gets nervous around people. Like she's shy."**

**Neo grinned at that.**

**"I don't think so baby."**

**"Has anyone seen Velvet?" Bane shouted over the crowd.**

**"I think I saw her taking a nap in back." Coco shouted back. "She was out of it, had to make sure she was still alive."**

"Oh thank the gods." Velvet sighed in relief.

"Well looks like you get to live chatter box." Coco sent another glare at the killer who merely smiled back

**"That girl is killing me!"**

**Neo shifted nervously in her seat. HER seat.**

**"Oh look, something's bothering the girl. We should let her go Jaune, no reason to hold her here."**

**Here? No. An unregistered building by the docks in Vale, where they'd have a chance to 'talk' in more depth? Certainly.**

**"Well yeah, Neo, we don't want to…Neo? Where'd she go?" The love of her life looked around in confusion. "How does she keep doing that?" The dense as depleted uranium, love of her life.**

**They'd finished the rest of their dinner without any additional incident, as a waiter named Russell took over their table. Russell was decidedly non-threatening, even if it looked like he might swing that way.**

Beacon students took a minute to think that little Tibet of information through and couldn't find anything to disprove it.

**She'd considered skipping the movie altogether, and simply heading home with Jaune. She was fairly certain that she could provide a bigger climax than this Spruce Willis character after all. **

"So I think Jaune corrupted Cinder into another pun lover." Yang didn't miss the pun.

Cinder herself just shook her head in dismay. Gods no.

**But she'd made the mistake of letting it slip that they had tickets. The way Jaune had lit up at the news had resigned her to watching this disaster with him. At least it didn't have dogs.**

**"Man babe, can't believe you decided to take us to the premier, I thought you hated these." Jaune said, as he practically skipped down the road.**

**"They're...interesting." She lied.**

**"I hear his partner's a dog in this one. What's the title again? Old dogs die hard?"**

**She was going to burn down an orphanage with Emerald inside it.**

**"Oh shit, we're going to be late! Let's cut down this alley."**

**That would normally sound like a remarkably poor choice, but...she was who she was. She rolled her eyes good naturedly and followed her husband.**

**Her first indication that something was wrong was Jaune's hand pushing her back, carefully corralling her behind him. The second was the voice that spoke from the darkness.**

**'Well, what do we have here?"**

_**No.**_

**"Looks like a pretty boy and his pretty bird."**

_**No.**_

**"We don't want any trouble." Jaune said carefully.**

"I don't think they'll care what you want." Vernal snorted.

"Yeah, they just care about what you have." Neptune agreed.

**"Well, see the thing is, we kinda do. Isn't that right Jimmy?"**

**"Might want more than that."**

**No. This happened to other people. She'd ensured that when she'd sold her soul. She was invincible.**

**"Stay behind me." Jaune whispered, slowly stepping forward.**

"Okay Cinder I think it's time to show why you're not meant to be fucked with." Mercury leaned back with his hands behind his head.

"I don't think she will." Emerald disagreed.

"Oh yeah? Why not?"

"Because who else will she be showing?"

"Arc, duh."

"Yeah, the one person she _doesn't_ want knowing what she can do."

"… well shit."

**Jaune wasn't invincible though.**

**"Oh? Looks like the pretty boy wants to scrap."**

**"Well, we can take care of that pretty problem for him."**

**Jaune raised his fist and fell into an approximation of a fighting stance.**

**Her husband was many things. He was unreservedly kind, he was incredibly thoughtful, and he was a good person, but…**

**He was not a fighter.**

**She cringed as the first blow found his cheek, whipping his head around. He made to swing in return, but the second man was already upon him, driving his fist into his ribs.**

"Okay, I think it's time to screw how you feel him seeing and do something." Qrow said.

Cinder however had a different thought. 'No! No, no, no, please let this escape last longer.' Despite her feelings, deep down she did want to forget that she was a monster whenever she saw herself and Ar-… Jaune together.

**She was impossibly and excruciatingly paralyzed. To act was to reveal herself, and lose Jaune. To not act was lose Jaune still.**

"Okay I think they might kill him so move your ass." Marrow started to feel nervous right now.

'It's okay, maybe he'll be knocked unconscious-' One voice rationalised.

'Or he could be killed before that even happens!' another argued.

**"Come on boy, thought you were a big man?" Jimmy taunted, as he drove a knee into Jaune, sending him to the ground.**

**She burned their faces into her memory. They were wearing colours, they were part of a gang.**

**Jaune struggled to his feet, and raised his fists again.**

"Stubborn one." Roman nodded.

**"Looks like he's still got some fight left Bob."**

**"Let's beat it out of him."**

**The next few minutes were an agony that she'd never experienced before. Over and over again they knocked him to the ground, their fists finding his face and their boots finding his ribs. And yet, over and over again, he stumbled to his feet, always circling in front of her, always trying to protect HER.**

"And what exactly are you doing!?" Pyrrha yelled, not understanding why Cinder was willing to let Jaune get hurt just to hide her true self.

_**Just stay down**_**. She mentally pleaded.**

**Bob shook his head sadly as Jaune rose again. "I don't think he gets it Jimmy."**

**A knife appeared in Jimmy's hand. "That's ok Bob, I'm a good teacher."**

"Fucking do something!" Yang slammed her fist down onto her arm rest.

_**Enough.**_

"Finally!" Nora shouted.

**Flames erupted into her hand.**

_**No more.**_

**Jaune coughed, blood splattering onto the concrete. "I've been told I'm dense that way."**

**The cretins' eyes widened with shock, and they took a slow step back.**

**"I'm not...not going anywhere." Jaune panted out.**

**Bob shook his head at Jimmy, and the men turn and fled.**

**Her husband laughed in relief, and turned to her, that stupid grin on his face. "You ok baby?"**

**She didn't get the chance to respond, as he collapsed to the ground in a heap, the strain finally overtaking him. She was by his side in an instant.**

**She heard the tell-tale sound of shattering glass, and looked up to see Neo cleaning her blade off on Bob's corpse, giving Jimmy's a kick for good measure.**

**Their eyes met. This woman knew her secret, knew what Jaune was, and what he was not. Everything inside her screamed for her to burn this woman to ash, to protect their secret. And yet, she'd saved Jaune, and therefore her. What did that make them?**

**Neo slowly reached out a hand, flicking her eyes towards Jaune.**

**She cared about Jaune, and for now, that was all that mattered. The flames in her heart abated, even if for a moment, and she took the girl's hand. They blinked out of existence together.**

'She truly does love him' Salem thought, her face not giving anything away.

**The hospital had been a turbulent affair. Not the least of which because they appeared in the ER waiting room as if by magic. Once there, she'd made it VERY clear that her husband was to be treated immediately, lest she start freeing up rooms for them, one by one.**

**Neo, surprisingly, or perhaps unsurprisingly, had backed her claim.**

**And so she sat by his bedside, gently stroking his hair, careful to avoid the gashes in his scalp.**

**"You're such a fool." She whispered.**

**Her fool.**

**She hated herself.**

**Hated herself for not acting sooner. Hated herself for lying to him. Hated herself for having to lie.**

**But, there were others she hated far more.**

**The door to the room burst open, and Emerald and Mercury rushed in.**

**"Is he ok?"**

**"What can we do?"**

**She loved them for that, even if she could never speak it.**

**"Look after Jaune." She said instead.**

**"Where are you going?" Emerald asked, worry etched on her face.**

**"I'll be back shortly." Was her only answer. She leaned down and whispered three very important words to him, before moving towards the exit.**

**"I love you."**

Both Jaune and Cinder didn't know how to react to this.

For Jaune, he was watching himself be with a murder, a monster who hid behind the mask of a loving, hard-working wife who loved him, someone who intended to harm innocent people. But as he looked at the reactions of Emerald and Mercury, he noticed sometimes they were surprised by her attitude, like they had never seen her like this. Did that mean he was having an effect on her? Changing how see felt and acted, would she even go through with what she was planning?

Cinder kept repeating in her head that such a dream could never come to life, that it was a child's dream, one she once had before she decided to no longer be a victim. To find someone who loved her and cared for her and wanted nothing in return.

She couldn't allow such weakness, she was watching how this bond was changing her, how she acted and thought. She shouldn't be afraid for him to see who she really was, she had the power to keep him from leaving her even if he thought she was a monster, that's what she should have done. He would stay and obey.

But would his love?

…

…

…

Was that what love was? Not just primal desire for one another's bodies, not just a stress relief, not just a silly notion of being a happy couple, but the want of a partner's love and affection and the feeling of heartbreak at the thought of that love dying through fear of him know that she was a…

Monster?

Even if she wanted such a life, she couldn't be with him, no love was shared between the two, at least from him. After all.

This monster took his partner's life away.

**Emerald moved to intercept her, but Mercury caught her. They really did understand her, each in their own way.**

**She pushed through the door and entered into the hallway of the hospital, her eyes falling to her new...something. Neo pushed off her place on the wall and met her gaze. She reached out to her, and she spoke three more very important words.**

**"Take me there."**

**She could feel the vibrations of the music as it boomed out of the warehouse as they approached.**

**They apparently called themselves 'The Departed.' She supposed that was fitting.**

**She summoned a pair of black blades to her hands, as she listened to the scrape of Neo drawing her own.**

**Cinder Fall was a monster.**

**She knew this. Sometimes, she liked to forget.**

**But now?**

**This city was about to remember.**

The projection fizzed out as Con' took the stage. "And that's all we shall be seeing, while there is more to this world, I think we should move on."

"A cliff hanger ending. Hate those." Sun said.

"You said this world had more to offer. Why not continue?" Salem asked.

"Well I feel that we have given this world enough attention for now." The god explained.

"Will we come back to this world?" Saphron asked.

"Possibly, like I said, this world certainly has a lot to offer, but for now I feel that a change in scenery would be better."

…

…

…

"…Could we see one more thing from it?" The audience turned to see it was Cinder who asked this, she kept her eyes on Con'. Not once looking at others questioning or knowing looks.

Con' was silent for a moment before he spoke. "What in particular would you like to see?"

"…I don't know."

Con' seemed to be mulling over the request before he nodded. "I think I have just the scene." He snapped his fingers and the portal whirled to life once more.

**She shuffled around the bathroom in her favourite hoodie, his, getting ready for bed.**

"My favourite damn hoodie." Jaune mumbled

**It had been a long day. It had been a hard day. She was exhausted.**

**She'd pulled Mercury to the side before he'd tried to take off, and informed him in no uncertain terms that her husband was to get stronger under his tutelage, but under no circumstances was he to pass the Huntsman test. His life depended on it.**

**She'd had Emerald check into this 'Glynda,' and sure enough, it was THE Glynda Goodwitch, the woman directly below Ozpin at Beacon. Gods, but how was it that Jaune knew everyone?**

"Wait. Am I trying to enter Beacon again?" Jaune asked.

"And you apparently know Miss Goodwitch in this one."

"You don't think he's trying to…"

"I doubt Mr Arc would try using our assumed friendship to enter Beacon, and I even then I would put a stop to such a tactic." Glynda answered professionally.

**Speaking of the cheeky thief…**

**She held up the box that the girl had slipped into her grocery bag without her noticing, an unmistakable green 'E' scrawled on the box. It certainly explained why the girl had been so insistent that SHE be the one to put the groceries up. If Jaune had found it, he would have lost his mind.**

"About what?"

**She wouldn't let him get his hopes up like that.**

"Get my hopes up for what? What's going on?" Jaune asked.

"I think we skipped over from when you were admitted into the hospital so something could have happened and we just don't have the context for this." Ren theorised.

**It was impossible. She **_**knew**_** it was impossible after what she'd been through. Jaune had always accepted that, never judged her for it, despite how disappointed she knew he was.**

**"Cindy, you coming to bed?" She heard Jaune call.**

**But still…**

**"Just a minute my love." She called back.**

**The test only took a moment, but the wait somehow seemed to stretch on forever.**

"Test?" Jaune didn't know what to think. It couldn't be what he thought it was.

Cinder shared the same thoughts as he.

Certain women had an idea as to what she was going through, after all they had experienced it themselves. Some more than once.

**All she needed was for what she knew to be true to show up, so she could sleep in peace.**

**The second line seemed to mock her, and everything she knew, everything she was, as it appeared.**

"Test? Second line? Jaune being disappointed?" Nora had no idea what was going on while others eyes widened.

**She couldn't be a mother. It was supposed to be **_**impossible.**_

_The sound of nothing was never so loud, it stretched on for seemingly ever, could this be?_

**She fell to her knees, and for the first time in a very, very long time, she shed tears. The bitter irony being the she couldn't tell if they were from joy or grief.**

Mothers sympathised with Cinder, they knew that tear between joy and dread at a serious change in their lives.

**"Baby, are you ok?" He called out in concern.**

**She strained to keep her voice steady.**

**"Yes my knight, I'm on my way. Everything's fine."**

**No matter how often she did it, she always hated lying to Jaune.**

**Cinder Fall was a monster.**

**She knew this.**

**And now, she knew she was very, very afraid.**

Nobody seemed to know what to say, those that knew Cinder just couldn't imagine her being a mother.

Pyrrha felt cheated, here she was, someone who loved Jaune for himself and fantasied about such a life with him only to watch her killer live her dreams. It was like she was in hell.

Cinder couldn't think properly, nothing made sense right now. Hell if you said fish could fly she'd probably agree with you.

She was a mother? Or at least an alternate version of her was. No, why was she surprised. They were watching different worlds with infinite possibilities, one was bound to show what she could never have.

So why did it seem so impossible even when she was watching it?

Jaune was stumped at the idea of being a father. Hell he didn't know if he actually ever wanted to settled down and have a family, his dreams were to be a huntsman and help the world however he could, now he was witnessing himself being a father to Cinder's child. He didn't know what to think of do.

…

…

…

…Would… would the child be like him?

As soon as he thought that, his mind began racing a million miles per hour.

Would he have a son or daughter?

Would he be a good father?

Would they want to be hunters like he was?

Would Cinder be a good mom?...

He had no clue where that last one came from but it stuck to his head, could he and Cinder ever truly have a life together? Create a life together?

Could they have actually fallen in love?

**0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0 **

**AND THAT'S A WRAP FOR MONSTERS MARRIAGE.**

**My god that took some time.**

**Another reason it took so long is because I was making another chapter for Multi-Arc-Verse, I won't spoil it but I am having a slight hiccup with it.**

**Credit for the original story goes to ****Jiu-jitsu dude**** for such a fantastic and well-made story, I'd recommend reading his other works as well, these have only been the first 5 chapters out of 12 if you've never read Monsters marriage.**

**I am such a fan for Knight-Fall and I will fight anyone who tries to change my view on said ship.**

**Hope you are all indeed staying safe and healthy and to all essential workers I thank you for your services and hard work during these scary days.**

**Leave a review on what could be improved or what you liked and I will do my best to either improve of keep up the good work.**

**Hope you all enjoyed reading this chapter and hope you do go see Jiu-Jitsu dude's other works.**

**Goodbye and stay safe. **


	7. Chapter 7

**Hey guys its Madman here and here is the next chapter to Multi-Arc-Verse!**

**Though here is a little AUTHORS NOTE!**

**DUN DUN DUUUUN!**

**No it's not anything serious, it's two things actually.**

**Should I do a story similar to this but with the series HARRY POTTER instead! I have only seen like one kind of story like this and besides the books I was wondering why hasn't anyone tried making them react to other shows, films, stories, games, etc. if so then what year would you think is best, I.E. during 1****st****, 2****nd****, 3****rd****, 4****th****, 5****th****, 6****th**** year? Those reacting being the Hogwarts students and staff along with key characters of the books.**

**This one will be a doozy. You see I got a PM from someone I won't reveal otherwise they would get more involved and it wouldn't be fair to him/her and plus they're a friend of mine.**

**They asked why someone was talking about me on one of their stories and I thought "Wow! Is my work getting noticed?" but they said it was by **

"_**Sir Attlich"**_

**When I saw the name I was like "Who?" so I decided to check it out, to my surprise this person was a fellow lover of the reaction story shtick. And so I was confused until I read his A/N about me then I remembered who this don was.**

**You see what happened was I had come across his works a few weeks back and he seemed to have some rather heated reviews and so I found out why.**

**I have experienced what this author has, people asking to see the cast react to a thing they love.**

**Now I myself don't really do requests, mainly because they're stuff that im not a fan of and wouldn't have the same drive to make them and thus turning them into rather bland chapters. I however like when people do ask, because it lets me know that people like how I write and want those same elements in what they like, I lets me know that im doing something right.**

**This author deals with the same thing and unlike me has asked for people to not request stuff. However what he said just tickled me the wrong way.**

**He said those asking should kill themselves.**

**Now, should I have shrugged it off and go on about my day? yes I should have. But I basically shot my foot and sent a review, basically telling him off and saying he should grow up.**

**I admit to being the one to start this slight argument and once again, I should have just left without a word. However in his reply, he had come off as mocking, condescending and just playing as the victim, saying he had the right to say that just because people didn't read his A/N.**

**The reason I started was because I know how telling someone to kill themselves can actually be effective to some, especially during these times of isolation and I just couldn't say nothing.**

**I shot my foot because I figured this guy would see what he done was just downright evil but no, he played the victim. I had realised that talking to him was like losing an argument to someone who is too immature to see the other's point and feel like they're in the right, so I had just blocked him, yes than can be seen as immature as well. I started this and should see it through to the end but just couldn't deal with the bullshit.**

**The reason I'm typing this is because I wanted to get my side of the argument out there. Am I adding fuel to the fire? Probably but fuck it. **

**So to **_**"**__**Sir Attlich" **_**if you happen to see this yourself then I do hope you feel good about yourself, telling others to kill themselves while behind a computer as to avoid getting your teeth punched in. and youre not justified for saying such a vile thing, grow the fuck up.**

**Whew! Sorry about that! Just needed to get that off my chest, to those that read this A/N then don't get involved otherwise ill just feel like the asshole, and just enjoy what's below.**

**To those that looked at the A/N and thought "aint nobody got time for that!" and just skipped then enjoy what's below because I have no need to get pissy.**

**0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0 **

"Well that was rather nice, a good change of what we've seen so far." Saphron voiced as she held her infant son.

"How would you know? You had your face buried in Adrian's tummy or my chest most the time." Terra teased her now blushing wife.

"I was not ready for today." Nora however wasn't as enthusiastic.

"I don't think any of us were." Ren agreed whilst stopping Nora from cleaning her eyes, with Syrup mind you.

"Look I get the whole endless worlds and what not but really? Jaune and Cinder getting together?" Yang spoke.

Con' chuckled at this. "Oh yeah, you see there are thousands of fellow beings like me that have an interest over your world and find some… parings rather nice and cute."

"Wait so, we could be seeing anyone with anyone?" Blake asked.

"Not anyone wi-."

"Anyone with _ANYONE." _Con' cut of Weiss.

Jaune then suddenly heaved but steeled himself from living up to his nick name, just barely. "What's wrong Jaune?" Pyrrha said worried.

"I just- hmph!- urgh! I just saw me and Cardin." Many from Beacon became disgusted and Ren really had to stop Nora from cleaning her eyes with Syrup whilst telling himself it wouldn't work so he shouldn't try it himself.

"Okay, in order to remove _that _horrifying image from our heads, let's watch the next world and don't worry, this next reality isn't dark or mature themed, more so light hearted, so enjoy." Con' then turned to the portal as it came to life

**It was turning out to be an average day on the island of Patch. It wasn't an overly warm summer day; the sun was shining down and a nice breeze was blowing through the trees of the woods. Here there is a wooden home not too different from the home of one Taiyang Xiao Long, which wasn't too far away. This one had a few key differences but one could easily see this newer building took much inspiration from the Xiao Long/Rose home.**

"I've never seen that house near us, so it must be a different reality." Tai theorised.

"That or possible future." Qrow added.

**Inside the living room of the house sat a young girl around six years old.**

Many cooed at the adorable child, mothers felt their instinct flare up and remembered the days of their own children's youth, Kali especially as she only had one child to enjoy those times with, oh well. Blake would always be her little kitten.

**She was dressed in black sneakers, black skirt, and a light blue t-shirt. She had neck length white hair with red tips that went about a third to half the way up her locks.**

"Wait a minute? White hair? That young?" Yang questioned.

"Maybe this is Weiss' child." Blake guessed.

"Why me?" Weiss asked.

"Well, why would any of your family be so close to where Ruby and Yang happen to live?" Blake pointed out.

"Okay fair enough, but why does she have hints of red in her hair?"

"Like me." Ruby messed with one of her locks and stared at the red that faded into black.

**The hair was pulled from her face by two hair clips on either side of her head. The one on the right was red and the left was pure white. Stunning silver eyes were filled with mirth and a happy smile was on her lips as she played with her corgi puppy, Drei. This was Summer Rose-Schnee.**

"Rose?" the little rose started.

"Schnee?" the snow flake finished.

"AW!" Summer gushed as she hugged her baby girl, happy to have her granddaughter, (_her granddaughter! She was a grandma!) _named after her.

"Wait, so this is Ruby and Weiss' kid?" Nora asked confused.

"That shouldn't be possible." Oobleck stated, his knowledge of the birds and the bees cementing this fact.

"Does that mean Ruby and Weiss are together?" Oscar asked, his question made the two huntress' blush and stammer denials.

"I may care deeply for Ruby but not like that!" Weiss spoke loudly with Ruby nodding in agreement.

Zwei merely barked at the fellow corgi. He looked fun! So did the little replica of his master and the treat giver.

**Summer was holding a small ball over her head as Drei had jumped up and placed his paws on her chest in a weak attempt to get it. He yipped a bit at his owner before he tilted his head with a whine. **

Tai groaned "That's how Zwei managed to get us wrapped around his finger… or paw in this case." Ruby, Yang and Zwei smiled at him.

**She smiled before she threw the ball down the hall towards the kitchen. "Go get it, Drei!" The small pup took off in a sprint towards the bouncing ball, losing traction once or twice and almost pumping into the wall. That caused her to giggle.**

"Okay, that's just adorable but she shouldn't really throw balls inside the house." Weiss said as she finished taking pictures.

**"Summer!" A feminine voice with stern undertone to it, sounded from the kitchen. "Please don't throw the ball in the house."**

"It's Weiss!" Ruby would know that bossy voice the best after all.

"Geez Weiss, being a mama already?" Yang teased Weiss who just huffed.

**She nodded, even though the person was still in the kitchen and couldn't see her do it. "Okay. Sorry, Mommy."**

**That was when a knock came from the front door. Summer turned to the door and just said loudly, "Who is it!?"**

**She heard someone clear their throat before deep voice said, "Cookie delivery. A lifetime supply of cookies for Summer Rose-Schnee."**

"That's a thing!" Ruby exclaimed but blushed and realised that it in fact, wasn't a thing, especially from the looks she received.

"Oh please don't tell me you passed on your love for sugary treats to our child." Weiss could feel a headache coming.

"For someone who isn't into her, you don't seem to mind seeing yourself with _my baby sister._" Yang said with an undertone of menace at the end, this made Weiss blush some more.

**The young girl's eyes widened before she took off towards the door, "Coming!" She got to the door and threw it open. But as soon as she did, a pair of arms wrapped around her and lifted her off her feet. She panicked and started to thrash in the arms, "Mommy! The cookie man is trying to steal me!"**

"He better put my daughter back down if he wants to keep breathing!" Weiss threatened as Ruby suddenly turned serious. Some creep had a sniper round with his name on it if he even thought he could take her little girl!

**She heard the stranger chuckle before a familiar voice spoke, "Cookie man? Is that what your nickname is for me now?" She stopped struggling and opened her eyes to see if it was real. She looked at the face of a man with blonde hair, blue eyes, and calming smile. "Hi, Summer."**

"Oh thank gods it's just Jaune." Weiss let out a breath of relief.

"Never know. Might be a bad thing in this world." Mercury said with a shit eating grin.

"Okay, that is just character assassination right there." Jaune argued.

"I'm and assassin, what did you expect?"

"Look, we've seen a world of me doing some questionable things but i don't care about the infinite possibility thing, I will never do something like kidnap a child, and if we do find one that does then I will kill that version of me myself." Jaune declared.

Con' just quietly decided to not show "_Chaperones"_

**"Uncle Jaune!" she shouted in unbridled joy and her tiny arms wrapped around his neck for as tight of a hug as she could muster. "I missed you!"**

"He's like a family friendly Qrow." Yang laughed as Qrow sent a glare at the smirking atlas specialist, well screw you too Yang.

**Jaune just hugged her close, "I missed you too. How's my favourite niece doing?"**

**She pulled back a bit to look at her uncle properly. "I'm doing great. I even taught Drei to play fetch!" she said excitedly.**

**He chuckled, "That sounds great." He then gave her a serious look. "But you shouldn't answer the door for anyone, Summer. Not unless your Moms say it is okay. Understand?"**

"He acts like a father really." Ironwood observed, not knowing how accurate he was.

**She looked down slightly, "Okay. I understand." She said disheartened. She then looked up at him, "Are you mad at me?"**

"She must be close to him, seeking his approval like that." Glynda said.

"Two moms must make blondie a father figure to her." Qrow agreed.

"That's something we may have to talk about." Terra whispered to her wife, with a son, a father figure may be more so necessary, on an emotional level, especially when Adrian starts growing up into a young man.

**Just staring into her bright eyes made his serious edge slip away. He sighed then smiled at her again, "No, I'm not mad."**

"And like Rubes, those eyes can have you wrapped around her finger as well." Yang chuckled. Tai, Qrow and Raven also remember their times with Summer during Beacon, then again, that look was more preferred than her glare, even Raven shivered at the memory.

**"Yay!" she cheered and hugged him again.**

**He chuckled, "So, have you been behaving for your moms?"**

**She nodded, "Yes. I've only been sneaking cookies when I'm **_**really**_** hungry, just like you told me." That caused him to laugh again.**

"You told my daughter what?" Weiss demanded from Jaune who threw his hands up in defence.

**"What have you been teaching my daughter?" asked a cold voice from the hallway. Jaune froze when he looked up and saw Weiss, who had walked from the kitchen to the living room, with her arms crossed and her foot tapping. The familiar cold glare on her face.**

"Uh oh." Team RWBY and JNPR had grown to realize the danger of having that look directed at them.

**She was dressed simply since it was her day off: black flats, with jeans and a white button up, short sleeve shirt. Her hair was tied back in a simply side ponytail instead of a complicated braid. But that didn't take away from the mature beauty she had obtained from the years spent out of school.**

"Age has been kind to you sister." Winter praised, making Weiss smiled in gratitude and thankfulness.

**"Uh oh." Jaune said as he stared at the annoyed mother. "I'm in trouble."**

**Summer turned to face her mother as she hugged her uncle tightly, "Mommy, don't her Uncle Jaune! He's my favourite uncle."**

Whitley didn't know if he should feel offended or not. On one hand, this was another reality, on the other, her "Favourite uncle" wasn't even blood related. Whatever happened to blood is thicker than water.

**Weiss looked at her daughter and he glared lessened significantly before her eyes went back to Jaune. "Must you use my daughter as a shield?"**

"Will you go through her to get to me?" Jaune asked.

"What? No!" mama Weiss denied.

"Then yeah, she's a more effective shield than what I have against you." Was the cheeky reply.

**He shrugged with a nervous smile, "I mean if it stops you from freezing me…"**

**Weiss just rolled her eyes playfully and a small smile came to her lips. She walked over to Jaune, raising up on her toes to kiss him on the cheek before she hugged him.**

"Wow, never thought I'd see that." Yang thought out loud.

"What? That I just kissed his cheek?"

"No that you actually show affection ms snow queen." Yang replied.

**Jaune smiled and wrapped his free arm around her. The other was still holding his niece. The two had grown close over the years, becoming close friends, and even seeing the other as siblings. With Weiss grateful to have a better brother figure than Whitley. **

'Okay, wow, fuck me I guess.' Whitley thought (Yes, underneath that posh exterior was a mouth that could make Qrow stare in shock, I mean c'mon, he most definitely whisper-shouted "Fuck you" whenever his dad was out of hearing range.) then again, maybe that statement had some truth to it, he wasn't the best sibling ever but with their father, what else could he do other than act the way he did, unlike Weiss, he didn't have the ideal big sister to run to whenever father was being, well… father. He thought bitterly.

**"It's good to see you, Jaune." she said happily.**

**Jaune smiled and gave her a brief squeeze, "Good to see you too, Weiss. How's the company?"**

'I thought I made Whitley my heir, after that fiasco Weiss pulled it was the best thing to do. The embarrassment she dealt me, honestly.' Jacques inwardly ranted.

**They pulled away, "Doing fine. Still having to adjust to not being at the office as much but they can still get a hold of me for conference calls." She then reached up to his other arm, "Give me my child." She said as she pulled Summer from his grasp, making the young girl pout.**

**Before he could ask why, the three heard the backdoor in the kitchen crashed open and footfalls running towards them. Not even a second later, Ruby ran into the room.**

"Aw! My baby has become such a beautiful young woman." Summer gushed some more, pulling Ruby into a death grip hug.

**She was dressed in black sneakers, black short-shorts, and red tank top. The usual outfit she would wear when training in the backyard and it also showed off how much of a grown woman she had become. She definitely wasn't the fifteen year old that went to Beacon anymore.**

"You can say that again." Neptune said as he got a good look, Oscar not far behind, his excuse was that he was a growing boy so he's innocent.

**She was looking around in a panic, "Summer! What's wrong?! I heard you… scream?" Her eyes finally landed on Jaune, who brought a hand up in a wave with a smile. Before he could say anything, Ruby's expression shifted from worry to excitement, "Jaune!" she shouted as she used her Semblance to crash into him.**

**"Ahhh!" Jaune screamed in shock, as Ruby crashed into him. He was sent out of the living room and landed on his back on the front porch. He felt two arms wrap around him to hug him tightly. He then felt a pair of lips kiss his other cheek and he looked down to see Ruby pulling away from his cheek. **

"A kiss from two beauties? Married women at that, maybe you are a lady killer." Yang laughed.

"Figured you'd be against Jaune being so close to Ruby." Blake said.

"Well vomit boy knows what will happen if he tries anything." Yang cracked her knuckles making Jaune gulp.

"Yang." Ruby groaned, seriously, she should be with whoever she decides and not have Yang throw a fit about it.

**She gave him a massive smile. "Why didn't you tell us you were stopping by?"**

**He smiled down at her as his own arms wrapped around her, "I wanted it to be a surprise. I finished my last mission and since I was already in Vale, I thought I would see how you three were doing. Although, I think I'll call next time. My back is killing me now."**

Those who had experienced the red blur attack that was Ruby's hugs could understand that, thank god those she done it to at least had aura.

**Ruby just shook her head, "Please, you love me and you know it." She grinned up at him.**

**He nodded, "True." That's when Drei padded over and just started to smell Jaune's face. He then gave him a few licks to his forehead before he sat down next to him. "Hey, Drei." He said casually and the puppy barked back reply. He then looked back down to his best friend, "So, you going to get off me or are you just trying to make Weiss jealous?" he asked with a smirk.**

"Certainly an interesting method." Yang teased.

Willow thought about said method for a minute, involving a certain Faunus pool boy but realised the only thing Jacques would get angry about would be the stains on the bed.

**Ruby just stuck her tongue out at him and stopped hugging him. That let them both stand up and Weiss was grinning at him. "Now you know why I took Summer." He just sighed with a nod of the head. "You'll be staying for dinner, right?"**

"I don't know if my other self should run while he can or take the free meal." Jaune said.

"Hey! What does that mean?" Weiss exclaimed with slight offense.

"Well one, Ruby wasn't our designated cook during our trek to Mistral and two, sorry Weiss but the stereotype of rich kids not knowing how to cook is probably true with you." Jaune explained.

"…it didn't have the "cook" button." Weiss turned her head away.

**He shook his head slightly, "I don't want to be a bother. I just thought I'd catch up with you all before I take my flight back to Argus."**

**Ruby looked at him aghast, "Jaune, you're going to try to take an overnight flight to Argus?"**

**He shrugged, "They're not that bad. I usually sleep through them."**

**Weiss shook her head, "You don't get proper sleep like that and since you just got done with your mission, you need to rest up. You're staying here for the night."**

**He scratched the back of his head, "I appreciate the offer but I don't want to be a burden to you two. You didn't even know I was showing up."**

**"It's no trouble at all, Jaune." Weiss continued. "We always have the guest room made up. Yang and Blake rarely give us a heads up when they show up, so it's best to be prepared."**

**Ruby nodded, "Plus, I always make extra servings for dinner. It'll be great to not have to clean up the leftovers for once."**

**Jaune looked between the two, trying to find an excuse to not stay. He honestly didn't have a problem with staying the night but just showing up out of nowhere made him feel guilty about it. But when he looked back at Weiss, he saw Summer looking up at him with those big eyes of hers, "Please, Uncle Jaune. I wanna hear about your mission."**

"Deploy the secret weapon!" Ruby declared.

"How's it feel seeing that look on the receiving end?" Qrow chuckled.

"It's actually really effective, but then I had to resort to those midnight suggestions." Ruby answered.

"Those Midnight what?" Yang asked.

"Those times I would slip in things I want you to d- I mean nothing!" Ruby managed to stop herself from revealing her manipulation skills.

**Jaune just stared at his niece before his head fell. He looked back up with a reluctant smile. "I guess I can stay…"**

**"Yay!" Summer cheered as she jumped from Weiss' arms into Jaune's, where she hugged him tightly.**

**The married couple just looked at the two with matching smiles. "She has you wrapped around her finger, Jaune." Ruby replied with a smile. He couldn't argue with that and just nodded.**

"Understandable, Adrian is the same I can't lie." Jaune chuckled with Saphron and Terra, both knowing that was a fact.

**After that, Jaune spent his time in the living room with Summer and Drei. Weiss joined them not long after with a pot of coffee while Ruby went to get a shower and to change into a different outfit: black jeans and a red t-shirt.**

**He told them how his new mission was helping out with clearing Grimm out of Mountain Glenn.**

The headmasters, teachers and official hunters leaned in at that, retaking Mt. Glenn? That would be a major improvement but as it was currently, it wasn't worth the risk, too much necessary man power and resources along with too big a risk, even if they managed to clear out the Grimm that resided there, constructing and repairs would cause too many negative emotions, thus bringing the Grimm knocking at their door, but if the Grimm population had been cut down significantly, such large advances could be taken and Humans and Faunus would gain more ground.

**The Council was hoping to clear the ruins out slowly and try to retrieve some relics to place in the Vale Museum of History. Once that was done, there was hopes of trying to restore the old settlement back to what they hoped it was. Him and about another dozen or so Hunters were part of the group to clear out the underground settlements and a few of the connected tunnels. There were many Grimm but the sheer manpower they had was enough to not have to worry too much.**

This made many smile, things were looking bright in the future, well possible future.

**Summer looked mesmerized by Jaune's tale but she usually had the same look when Ruby or Weiss told her similar tales from their own missions. And for most of the night, both before and after dinner, Summer had sat herself in her uncle's lap to listen to him. Whether to listen to him talk about his mission or just listen in when he was chatting with her parents. Neither of her mothers had a problem with it. They were both happy that Summer had such a close relationship with Jaune.**

**As Summer gave an adorable yawn, Ruby and Weiss shared a look and Ruby nodded. "Okay, Summer, it's time to go to bed." Ruby told her.**

**Summer turned to her mother, "Do I have to, Mommy?"**

**"If you wanna grow up big and strong you have to." That caused the little girl to pout. "Now, say goodnight and I'll read you a story."**

**Summer nodded before she leant up and kissed Jaune on the cheek. "Good night, Uncle Jaune."**

**He smiled and gently ruffled her hair, "Good night, Summer."**

**She then got off his lap and went over to Weiss where she hugged and kissed her, "Good night, Mommy."**

**Weiss had the most radiant smile when she returned the hug, "Good night, my little angel. Sleep tight." **

Both huntresses had the same smiles with their counterparts, while neither had such feeling for another, they couldn't deny that such a sight was a precious one. All parents sharing their sentiments as they remembered their own children being at those stages, Raven felt a stab at her heart as she knew that she couldn't have that feeling, not after leaving her daughter. She shook off the feeling and became her stoic self once more. Though she couldn't throw off the jealousy she felt when she saw Tai and Summer lean their heads against one another.

**With that, Summer took Ruby's hand and was taken upstairs to go to bed. Both Weiss and Jaune watching them go.**

**When they were gone, Jaune looked back to Weiss, "You two are so lucky to have her."**

**Weiss nodded with the same radiant smile, "We know we are." There was a brief silence before Weiss looked at him with a smaller smile, "We never thanked you for everything."**

"Pardon?" Weiss asked.

"And here comes the twist or major point." Mercury threw some popcorn in his mouth.

**Jaune just shook his head with a small smile, "No, you did. A lot in fact, especially from Ruby." The two had a chuckle before he continued. "Besides, I was happy to help, Weiss."**

**"You know, Ruby and I still don't mind." She sounded nervous. "If you want to…"**

**"I appreciate it, Weiss. But I think I better not." Jaune told her. She looked up to him and he had a strained smile on his lips. She understood what that meant and nodded, not wanting to push the subject.**

"What's going on? What do they mean?" Ruby asked also.

Saphron smiled "I think I have an idea." A quick squeeze from her Wife made the blonde smile even more.

**Ruby came down a few minutes later with a sigh, "Sorry about that. She wanted another story and she can be relentless." She then plopped down on the couch and rested her head on her wife's shoulder.**

**Weiss rolled her eyes, "This wouldn't happen if you stopped spoiling her."**

**Ruby just looked up at her wife, "Like your whole 'Ice Queen' act doesn't go out the window the second she gives you the puppy eyes." Weiss looked to the side as she drank her coffee. Ruby smirked and Jaune chuckled.**

All parents once again smiled, each pair had that one that spoilt the children/child.

Salem herself hid her smile as she remembered the days of her and Ozma along with their beautiful angels, honestly Ozma was wrapped around their little fingers.

**Weiss looked to him with a faint blush on her cheeks, "What are you laughing at, Arc? You are staying here out of the kindness of our hearts, so you better show me my do respect." Weiss said as she slipped into her business persona.**

**This had little effect on Jaune. He just shrugged. "I guess I overstayed my welcome." He got off the other couch and started to walk to the door. "Thanks for the hospitality. See you two later."**

**He got halfway to the door when he felt a body jump onto his back, arms around his shoulders and legs around his waist. "Nope, you're not leaving." Ruby said simply.**

**Jaune just looked over his shoulder at the reaper, "You aren't fifteen anymore. You really shouldn't be doing this to an unmarried man. Especially with your wife watching."**

"How shameful." Summer joked.

**Instead of blushing, Ruby gained a smirk very much like Yang's. "What's wrong, Jaune? Are you going to get flustered over little, old me?" She then hugged him closer.**

"I don't know if I should be happy that she's become like me or worried." Yang confessed.

"You're against the idea of there being another you?" Blake mock surprised.

"Nope, there can only be one Yang Xiao-Long!" She cheered as many shook their heads.

**He smirked back, "First, you aren't little or old. Second, I got over Yang's teasing **_**long**_** ago, the mater of the art you are trying to copy." **

"Okay ouch." Yang acted hurt, but seriously how could Jaune of all people not be affected by her teasing? It was blasphemy!

**He then turned around to look over to Weiss, "Can you please do something here?"**

**Weiss took a sip of her coffee before she spoke, "You should've gone for his legs, honey. He can't run away without them." She said with a smirk.**

"Yeah! Wanna keep your man? Break their legs!" Nora cheered with a crazed smile.

"I fear for our son." Li Ren whispered to his wife.

"I like her." An Ren argued.

**Before he could come up with a rebuttal, all three adults heard Summer shouting from upstairs, "Uncle Jaune! There's a monster outside my window!"**

**Jaune looked at Weiss and she just raised an eyebrow, "You heard her, go save her."**

**Ruby got off his back and sat next to Weiss again, "She did call you."**

**He smirked, "Fine." He started to walk towards the stairs, "I'll be back shortly." He went up the stairs before going down the hall to Summer's door. He opened up the door and saw Summer hiding under her blankets. "Summer?"**

**She saw her tiny hand poke out and point towards her window, "I-it's over there." She said with a shaky voice.**

Weiss and Ruby immediately had a surge of protectiveness overwhelm them at the fear in their angel's voice.

**Jaune quickly walked over and looked out the window. He looked around the yard below before he noticed that a tree branch from the nearby tree was leaning towards the window, looking similar to a hand or claw. And if on a que, the wind blew to make it scratch at the window. The noise caused Summer to squeak in fear before pulling herself deeper under the covers. He opened the window before reaching out and grabbing a hold of the branch. With a quick surge of aura to his hand, he broke it off with little difficulty. He then tossed it down towards the trunk of the tree.**

**He pulled himself back into her room and closed the window, "There you go, Summer. It wasn't a monster though, just a tree branch."**

**Summer slowly pulled the blankets down enough for the top of her face to appear. She looked at him with uncertain eyes. "Are you sure?" He just nodded with a calming smile. With that, she pulled the rest of the blanket down and sighed in relief. She then gave him a grateful smile. "Thank you, Uncle Jaune."**

**He walked over and gently rubbed the top of her head, which she leant into with a small hum. "Anything for you."**

**The two stayed like that for a bit before Summer looked back up at him, "Can you answer a question for me?"**

**Jaune took his hand away before he knelt down beside her bed, that way they could be eye to eye. "I can certainly try. What's on your mind?"**

**"Well…" she started. "A lot of the other kids in my class have a mommy and a daddy. So, why don't I have one?"**

"Aw crap." Qrow muttered.

"Maybe we can finally find out how she came to be." Oobleck leaned in, while the possibility of Jaune having a hand (Or another appendage woah-hoy!) was there, the fact that little summer had both characteristics of Ms Rose and Ms Schnee argued against that. She would have only genetics from one of the mothers while having some related to Mr Arc.

**His eyes widened a bit. He honestly wasn't expecting **_**that**_** to be her question. He certainly knew why that was. Ruby and Weiss had done a procedure. It allowed two eggs to be merged together then fertilized with a sperm. It was an experimental procedure that would help women to have their own children. The child would have characteristics of the two women but have very little from the sperm donor. But, how exactly was he supposed to explain that to a six year old?**

"Looks like you have your answer doc'." Tai said.

**"That is a tricky one." He said out loud as he scratched his chin. Summer was still looking at him but now with her head tilted. "Well, a lot of kids have both but you are special, Summer. You see, your mommies loved each other so much that they were able to have you without you needing a dad. Does that make sense?"**

**She thought for a little bit before she looked down. Jaune just raised an eyebrow, "Summer, are you sad or jealous that you don't have a dad?"**

**She shook her head, "Nope. Not at all."**

**"Really? Well that's good." He smiled at her.**

**She nodded, "Yup. I have you Uncle Jaune, I don't need a daddy." She said with a bright smile.**

"AW~!" most the women cooed.

"Oof, right in the feels." Sun joked.

**He was honestly floored by that. He felt his chest warm in a way that he hadn't felt before. He could feel his eyes beginning to tear up. So he got a bit closer and hug her tightly, "Well, glad to know I mean so much to my favourite niece." She just giggled and returned the hug.**

"Man that's gotta be nice, even though she thinks you're her uncle, she still sees you as a dad." Neptune spoke.

**Eventually, he pulled away from her. He tucked her back into bed before kissing her hair and wishing her a good night again. He went to her door and left, gently closing it behind him. He looked back at her door for a bit before he turned to go back downstairs. He nearly jumped when he saw Ruby leaning against the wall. She gave him an apologetic smile, "Sorry, you were taking a while and I was curious." She said in a low tone.**

**He just shook his head, "It's fine, Ruby. Did you hear…?"**

**She guiltily nodded her head, "Yeah, I heard. She's actually been asking me and Weiss that a lot lately."**

"Must be a toughie." Summer said.

**Jaune just raised an eyebrow, "Why haven't you answered her?"**

**She shrugged helplessly, "We weren't sure **_**what**_** to tell her."**

"Just tell the brat the truth and let her get over it." Raven couldn't see the need to make the situation this complicated.

Her team and family either gave her annoyed or flat looks.

**He took a deep breath, "Well, don't worry. I told her what I think she needed to hear. So, crisis averted." He replied with a weak smile that didn't fool either of them.**

**"Jaune." Ruby started as she walked closer to him. She gently placed her hand on his upper arm, "You could tell her. We aren't against you doing it. We never have been."**

"No, at that age she'd probably just be confused or hurt, thinking that I'd want nothing to do with her." Jaune disagreed. "Better to just keep up the story or tell her when she's older."

The Cotta-Arc parents shared a discreet look there.

**He quickly shook his head, "Ruby, the only thing that would do is confuse her. She doesn't need to know that. And, at the end of the day, I'm not her father."**

**"Not her father?" Ruby asked, shocked but still in the same low tone. "Jaune, you are the reason she is even here right now. She may look like me and Weiss but, Jaune, she is as much your daughter as ours. We asked you to be the donor and you agreed in a heartbeat to help us have our family." He looked to the side. "Jaune, we understand you kept away so she could be our daughter but that's not necessary. Summer having you in her life is good for her. And her being in your life is the best thing to happen to you in a long time."**

Glynda frowned at that, knowing what could be putting Mr. Arc in this state. She has been a huntress and a teacher for quite a while and knows what it's like to see warriors suffer at the loss of those close to them. With the death of Ms. Nikos came sorrow for many at Beacon, student and staff alike, no more than for the remaining members of team JNPR.

Losing students at the hands of Grimm was sadly not unheard of and so Beacon would give counselling to the team mates or just team mate and would keep the student(s) from any missions for their own benefit.

But Mr. Arc? Ms. Rose? Team JNPR as a whole? No such therapy, no such comforts. They just threw themselves into the unknown and were in a war that was bigger than them.

Glynda promised to sit them down and help them through whatever they were feeling.

**He sighed, "Ruby, I get what you're getting at but I'm not changing my mind. Summer doesn't need me as her father. She needs me to be her 'Uncle Jaune'. And that's good enough for me."**

**Ruby gave him a glare, "Even if it means, you never get to be with your little girl like you should be?"**

**"Well, she's not my little girl, so…" He spoke but his voice was thick with emotion. It hurt him a lot to say those words. And both knew it. He cleared his throat slightly, "I think my last mission is starting to catch up with me. I think I should get some sleep." He pulled back from Ruby and her hand slowly fell to her side. "See you in the morning." With that he slipped into his temporary room and closed the door behind him.**

Ruby slightly flinched at the dismissal from her friend, at times during the beginning of their trek to Mistral Jaune was somewhat distant and wouldn't talk or just leave whenever Ruby tried to get him to open up, seeing him do it even after all these years just didn't sit right with her.

**Ruby stood there just looking at the door for a while before she lowered her head with a sigh. She then slowly walked back down the hall and down the stairs. Weiss looked up as she walked over to her, "Any luck?" Her answer was to just plop down onto the couch and cuddle up to her. Weiss sighed, "I'll take that as a 'no'."**

**Ruby just shook her head, "He still is against telling her." She said sadly. "I think Pyrrha's death still weighs on him, even after all this time. That's why he doesn't let anyone in. I think he's afraid that if he opens his heart, he'll just get it broken all over again."**

It was now Pyrrha's turn to flinch after what Ruby said and deep down, she couldn't help but feel guilty, was it truly her fault? Had her arrogance cause so much harm to what was essentially her family?

**Weiss gently wrapped her arm around Ruby's shoulder before she rested her own head against her wife's. "We can try again tomorrow but let's not push too hard. We don't want to push him away." Ruby nodded and the two just relaxed with each other before they too would eventually call it a night.**

**Jaune woke up early the next morning, made sense since he went to bed so early. He then remembered how he just brushed off Ruby and the guilt started to rise in him. He sighed to himself before he got out of the bed. He made it before he changed into some of his more casual clothing that was in his backpack: simple jeans and a black t-shirt.**

**He left his room with his backpack and made his way downstairs. He saw that no one was there and placed his bag by one of the couches. He went down the hall and wasn't surprised to see that the kitchen was just as empty. He then got an idea on how to try to make up for what he had done the night before. He grinned at the idea and went about getting to work.**

**Several minutes later, Jaune was at the stove cooking breakfast for everyone. He had two frying pans on the burners, one with eggs and the other with bacon. He was humming to himself as her worked, enjoying the simplicity of what he was doing. He was then wondering what he'd do if he got done cooking and no one was up. Although those fears were unwarranted when he heard a yawn followed by Ruby saying, "What smells so good?"**

**He looked over his shoulder to see Ruby and Weiss standing there, half asleep and in their pyjamas. He just grinned at them. "Breakfast. I'm making eggs and bacon. Grab your coffee and this'll be done shortly."**

**He turned back to the frying pans and saw the two move to the coffee maker. "You're the best, Jaune." Ruby said and Jaune just chuckled. He then scooped the eggs and bacon from the frying pans and placed them on two plates. He walked over and placed them in front of Ruby and Weiss. Weiss grinned up at him, "Thank you, Jaune. This was very thoughtful."**

**He shrugged with a smile, "Think of it as a 'thank you' for letting me stay the night." He then scratched the back of his head nervously. "And an apology for how I acted last night."**

**The married couple looked at each other before looking back at him. Ruby was the one to speak, "We're sorry too. We shouldn't have tried to push you into something you're not comfortable with."**

**He shook his head, "It's no big deal. And I do want to tell Summer but I think it isn't the right time. Maybe when she is a bit older and can understand the situation better. I think I'd be more comfortable with that."**

**Weiss nodded, "That sounds fair. We'll respect your decision."**

**Jaune smiled, "Thank you. Now I should probably get back to cooking before Summer gets up. I don't want to suffer the torture of the puppy eyes." That earned him a chuckle from the both of them.**

**Ruby and Weiss went about eating while Jaune started to cook for himself and Summer when she would eventually get up. As they were doing that, the three just chatted about what Jaune would be doing in Argus and he told them to visit Saphron and Terra. Adrian had started to gain an interest in being a Huntsman and Jaune was going to give him some light training.**

"Oh! I wonder what his weapon would be. An axe? Spear? Sword and shield? AH! Would Jaune hand down Crocea Mors to him?!" Ruby's mind went buzzing.

Jaune didn't know what he'd do if such a thing came to pass, the weapon was after all handed down from one successor to another, or in Jaune's case taken but it depended on what future Adrian would want in a weapon, besides if the little squirt did want it the Jaune could give him a strong, reliable weapon and see to getting a newer weapon. Win, Win!

**They all heard an adorable yawn and they turned to see Summer walk into the kitchen while rubbing her eye. Drei was right behind her before he saw Jaune and ran over to him. "Morning." She said tiredly.**

**Ruby smiled wide, "Morning, sweetheart. Did you have a good sleep?"**

**She nodded before she looked back at her mother. "What's for breakfast?"**

**Weiss grinned right before she answered, "Well, your uncle has been cooking us some tasty eggs and bacon. Do you want some?"**

**"Yes, please!" she said happily as she walked over to the table. Weiss helped her up into her seat just in time for Jaune to place her plate in front of her. She looked up at him with a huge smile, "Thank you, Uncle Jaune!"**

**He just returned her smile, "Not a problem." He then took the only remaining seat as he ate his own breakfast. They all just chatted as they ate and enjoyed their meal. Until Jaune noticed what Summer was doing and smirked, "Summer, is my bacon that bad that you are feeding it to Drei?"**

**She turned back to him with wide eyes as she dropped another piece of bacon on the floor. "No! It's so yummy! I just thought Drei would like to try some…" she said quietly as she looked down.**

Tai let out a tired groan as he remembered his girls doing the same thing. "It was a struggle to make sure you didn't feed him certain stuff." Ruby and Yang just laughed sheepishly whilst Zwei let out another cheerful bark.

**Weiss was the one to speak up, "That was very thoughtful of you but you shouldn't feed him things like that. You could get him sick, okay?"**

**"Okay." Summer said as she got back to eating.**

**When they were all done, Jaune got up and started to take the plates. Until Ruby took them from his hands, "Nope." She said simply as she walked over to the sink. "You've done enough. I'll wash them."**

**He opened his mouth to say something but Weiss just walked past him, "I'll give you a hand." She said as she started to dry the dishes.**

**He just sighed before he walked over to Summer's seat and scooped her up. She giggled excitedly. "Come on, Summer. Let's see what cartoons are on." He said as he walked into the living room with her and Drei at his heels.**

"For someone who wants to be seen as an uncle, you are such a dad." Sun joked.

Weiss and Yang felt a pang of jealousy hit, having a parental figure that didn't leave or became distant was something both wanted. Or at least a partner that wouldn't be like that should they have children.

'Yeah, vomit boy seems to be a good dad, hell he seems like a good guy to be with, makes time, is caring, keeps close to family and is a good father to little summer… holy crap I want vomit boy to be my baby daddy' whilst Yang was having that fun little crisis, Weiss couldn't help but feel that Jaune was an excellent donor to help father a child.

'After all Arc was kind, reliable…' and we lost her.

**They sat down and Jaune tried to find something Summer wanted to watch but before that happened she hugged the front of his shirt. He looked down at her, "Do you have to leave so soon?"**

**He gently started to stroke her hair, "Yeah. I have to so see my sister in Argus then I need to go see your Aunt Nora and Uncle Ren. Otherwise, I would love to spend more time with you."**

**She nodded reluctantly, "Okay…" she was quiet for a few minutes before she got up from the couch. "I have something for you." She said excitedly as she ran over to where her book bag was. Jaune just watched her with a raised eyebrow, wondering what she was up to. She then ran over with a large sheet of construction paper. "Here!"**

**He looked down and saw that it was a picture that she had drawn. It showed herself with Ruby and Weiss. Even Drei was there. But what shocked him the most was that she had drawn him there too. And above them all was the simple title: My Family.**

'Uh oh, here comes the feels' Con' decided to summon some tissues and place them near the more emotional audience members, getting confused looks in return. He only gestured to the portal.

**He looked to his niece in confusion, "Summer, why did draw me too?"**

**She just smiled up at him, "Because your part of my family, silly. Everyone else had their mommies and daddies. So, I added you!" she said happily. Jaune just slowly looked back down to the paper as her heart felt like it was about to burst. He just kept staring until he saw a drop of water land on the crayon drawing. He was confused until Summer held his arm. "Uncle Jaune, why are you crying?"**

People started to silently thank the omnipotent being as they grabbed some tissues.

**He reached up and felt that there were tears coming down his face. He chuckled before he looked back at Summer, who was looking at him in concern. He put the drawing on the coffee table before he picked her up to hug her. "Nothing is wrong. You just make me so very happy."**

**She hugged him back, not completely understanding but not letting that deter her. "I love you, Uncle Jaune."**

**"I love you too, Summer." He just held her close and enjoyed the moment. **

You could start to hear the sniffles as people damped their eyes. Sun and Neptune holding one another with tears streaming from their eyes.

Sun blew loudly into his tissue whilst Neptune blew loudly into Sun's tail.

"Bro what the hell!?" everyone ignored the outburst.

**It would still be a while before he could tell her the full truth. But now, he had the feeling that she would probably take it better than he had thought.**

**From the doorway, Ruby and Weiss stood with their arms around each other as they smiled at the sight in front of them.**

**0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0 **

**A/N: hello everyone, thank you for reading the latest chapter to multi-arc-verse. I huge thanks to LordHellPhoenix for letting me use his work in this chapter, I just saw it and loved it straight away, such wholesomeness. Check out his other works if you have not as he has many great ideas and is an overall nice guy.**

**Once again If you think I should do a harry potter multiverse reaction story then feel free to let me know as I already have some ideas for chapters.**

**I hope everyone is staying safe and healthy and I look forward to your thoughts.**

**Ive made a poll for you to decide**


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: Hey everyone, so yeah, people really seemed to love the idea of a Harry Potter multiverse viewing. Can't wait to have some guy write 1000 words about copyright about harry potter cause that seems to be the only place that gets it. (Yeah, they go for fanfic writers instead of YouTubers that use the characters, merchandise, music and film clips)**

**In this chapter, the audience get to have a wander around outside the theatre and meet some interesting guests. This is going to be separate chapters during it, so take this as part one.**

**0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0 **

In the show room, the audience were talking amongst them-selves. Certain groups keeping their discussions down to a whisper, such as Ozpin and Salem along with their respective inner circles.

Hunters in training had some catching up to do with their friends whilst those with their parents in the show room moved to them.

Over at Salem and her minions, the topic came down to the silver eye girl and the young Arc.

"So not only do we have a surviving silver eye warrior but a boy who may or may not have a bigger impact that what was originally predicted." Hazel summed up as he crossed his massive arms.

"How did you fail to clock on to this boy Cinder? You spent quite a while at Beacon, surely you must have noticed something." Watts tsked making Cinder snarl at the scientist.

"At Beacon, Arc was a nobody, his record of wins were as low as your success rate, he was better known for his losses while his partner, Pyrrha Nikos was a bigger threat and was Ozpins intended candidate for the next Fall Maiden." Cinder argued as Emerald nodded in agreement.

Tyrian sat in his usual crouch position on his chair (This guy wanting to be L from Death Note so badly) "Even I saw something interesting in the kid when I went to capture that little red brat." He was still sore about the whole tail getting cut off deal. "But it's just like you to judge a book by its cover, you saw a weakling and thought nothing more, so caught up in your own powers. Look where that's gotten you." He cackled at the end.

Cinder's rage spiked at the insane Faunus mocking her and was about to retaliate but stopped as Salem spoke.

"What have I said about fighting amongst ourselves?" the question seemed innocent enough but from Salem? It was the death itself was hovering behind you. That manged to cease the disruption between each other as their eyes showed barely controlled fear.

"Now, from the reports I received about possible followers of Ozpin, one can understand Dear Cinder's denial of Arc being anything more than an insignificance but now that we see that he can be of some use, it comes down to whether he will join us, or fall to us."

Salem then caught Mercury opening and closing his mouth from the corner of her eye. "Mercury was it?" she asked.

The silver haired assassin flinched at being caught and singled out by the Grimm Queen but knew being silent now would only land him in hotter water. "Well I was just about to say that it's gonna be harder to get Jauney boy on our side, what with Cinder killing his partner." The false maiden sent a glare at Mercury, was he trying to blame her for not getting Arc on their side?!

Hazel spoke next. "I have to agree mistress. When it comes to with us or against us, I believe that the latter is his choice. At Haven academy, he let his feelings be known about us before the battle and our abduction. He has firm believe in his own views of right and wrong." From what the boy said before charging at Cinder, the giant knew Arc would never join them.

"Perhaps seduction?" Salem then looked to the other women of her cult.

"Well Cinder did shoot his little girlfriend and incinerated her so I don't believe she will be a good candidate." Watts shook his head.

"True but the universe of Dear Cinder and Arc being together may have planted the seeds of doubt, making him believe Cinder can be "Redeemed" even with their history." Salem said before she changed the topic.

"We have talked about the possible threat or ally, now let us move on to the actual threat. The silver eye warrior." She prompted.

"S-same as Jaune mistress, she has a sense of being the good guy, I don't think she can be turned." Emerald spoke up.

"Better to just kill her before she has a better grasp on her abilities." Tyrian suggested.

Salem contemplated the Information from this and the previous viewings silently. This could cause a problem but nothing would stop her from her end goal. Nothing.

**0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0 **

With Ozpins group, the subject was more or less the same.

"Qrow, there must have been something!" Ironwood insisted.

"Im tellin' ya Iron-ass. Kid didn't show anything special. He and his teammates definitely have more loyalty and guts than most hunters I've worked with or seen but that's about it. No flashy show or powers. Not even a peep of a semblance." The experience huntsman took a swig of his flask after that.

"While Mr Arc may not be the best fighter, he certainly has a talent for strategies and an eye for detail." Glynda did see vast improvement from Arc during his stay at Beacon but nothing compared to the foes they fight. Grimm maybe but the people that worked for Salem? Not a chance unfortunately. Not without more training at least.

"Yeah, kid also doesn't trust us that much." Qrow added. "What with Nikos and that." The group fell silent at that. Another person they dragged into this war and failed. It didn't get any easier with every death.

"Nonetheless, Mr. Arc is now an anomaly and Salem won't stand for that, he is either in danger of being killed or captured by her agents. For now we must prepare teams RWBY and JNPR for they may be a deciding factor in this war." Ozpin said. He knew Jaune was special, but in terms of a student, he never thought it would turn into this.

"You're right about that Ozpin. Clover, I leave their training in your hands, the Ace-ops are a successful team and with them teaching teams RWBY and JNPR, we may even the odds." The specialist nodded at his generals orders. This would certainly be interesting. From what he's seen from the portals and the Arc himself, the young hunter in training was more of a power house. Using strength and durability rather than agility. Elm would be a good match for him.

**0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0 **

"So what do you think we'll watch next?" Oscar asked his… friends? Were they close enough to be considered friends, would they consider him a friend? Or Just a part of Ozpin? Oh all of this was just too much for the young farmer.

"Well we've seen an alien martial artist, wizard guy, weird Santa, deadly mercenary, house husband to fire bitch and baby daddy. Anything at this point I guess." Coco listed off.

"Well so far, the first one was my favourite!" Yang said, honestly, aliens, fighting, muscles, energy blasts, muscles, demons, muscles, badass poses and one liners, did she mention muscles?

"The Santa Jaune was the funniest really." Nora laughed as she remembered Santa Jaune bombing the world with gifts.

Before anyone else could continue, Con' popped into existence, gaining everyone's attention.

"Hello everyone, after the realities we just witnessed, I decided to allow everyone a break, so feel free to explore this realm if you wish. I have a gym, a forge for all weapons and armour, hot springs, library and other areas to your desire, just follow the signs I have posted around. I apologise if I seem dismissive but I have something important to attend to. So once again, feel free to roam, though I must ask everyone to avoid any conflict with one another. Verbal? I don't care about, physical? And we will have a problem." Con' left that threat hanging as he disappeared the same fashion.

As he did, multiple doors appeared with different titles above the openings.

Everyone looked at one another before they got from their seat and headed to the areas they wanted to explore. Some going at different times depending on the people heading the same direction.

**0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0 **

After a while, Blake found herself in the library, others such as Salem and Watts were there as well but she felt at ease with Ms. Goodwitch, Oobleck and Ozpin along with her dad in the same place. Sun had followed her to hang out, even if he knew it was going to be some lame library but he was kind like that. Not that Ghira was too happy about it.

Besides that, this Library was like none she had ever visited before, it was exquisite! It was like every book of Remnant and even different worlds resided here, ranging from fiction, history, science, religion and so on.

Blake and her father along with Sun were strolling through the collection before rounding a corner and seeing something rather strange.

"What?" Ozpin along with the two professors shared a look before dashing to where their students shout come from.

They rounded the corner but across from them, Salem calmly walked from behind another aisle with Watts trailing behind her.

Ozpin froze before putting on a glare, Salem matching his with equal ferocity yet greater hatred.

They were both taken out from their glaring contest from the exclamations of Oobleck and Watts. And both saw why.

Unlike the rest of the library they walked through, this section was much larger, well the room itself was indeed large but this section had what seemed like chairs, desks and books or pads designed in mind for a giant. This area was obviously built for bigger guests but why?

Their unspoken question was answered as loud footsteps sounded off from behind one of the giant Bookshelf's.

Those that used weapons instinctively reached for them before realising they didn't have their trusty instruments.

Ghira, being the peacekeeper he was, sought to de-escalate the situation. "Hold on, remember the rule? No harm can come to anyone her and for all we know, we may not even be in danger." He reasoned as he put a comforting hand on his daughter's shoulder.

The footsteps grew louder and closer as it was just around the corner from ahead of them till their mystery guest revealed himself.

They were all shocked to see the giant have a body entirely of metal, he stood around 30 feet tall. Strangely his body while robotic seemed to resemble a truck, especially the chest area and the wheels that rested at his legs.

His head was blue along with his chest, shoulders and forearms, his knees and feet were a light black while his hands, elbows, thighs and face were silver with electric blue eyes.

He seemed to be looking through the collection of stored knowledge just like they had before until he noticed the smaller beings.

Some tensed once again under his gaze. He slowly walked closer to the group and sat on one of his knees as he lent his face down lower so that they were at least the same level. At least they didn't have to strain their necks to look at him.

When the large robotic being noticed their weariness he lifted one hand in a calming gesture.

"Hello." He greeted politely yet his voice boomed slightly due to his large stature compared to them. "Do not worry, I mean you no harm." he said to help ease them out of their hostility.

"W-what are you?" Glynda couldn't help but ask.

"I am an autonomous robotic organism from my home planet, Cybertron." He answered.

"Robotic organism? As in a living robot?" Watts couldn't believe it!

"Who made you?" Sun asked, hoping he didn't offend the thing that could crush him with one finger.

"My kind was created by Primus, a godlike entity who's origin date back to the beginning of the universe itself, our very home-world is his own body, transformed to sustain the life that grew upon It." the giant explained.

"If you're an alien, why do you a resemblance to a human creation?" Oobleck pointed at the wheels and exhaust pipes across his body.

The robot grew a mournful look. "My planet had become uninhabitable after the great war between Autobots and Decepticons. The war raged for millennia until we destroyed the very planet we fought for, many took refuge among other planets. I happen to come across a planet called Remnant and from there we sought to protect it from the Decepticons that were either stationed there or followed soon after. During my stay, I knew that acquiring a vehicle mode that was of the planets native origin was the best course of action to remain hidden from the public."

"Vehicle mode? So you can change your structure?" Oobleck wished he had his trusty note book, he wondered if the being would allow him to study it.

"My kind have the ability to transform into an alternative form, mostly used for transportation, such as ground or air." The metal being filled in.

Ghira was next to ask a question "So you're a soldier of this war?"

"Yes, I am the leader of the Autobots." He answered.

"Well we know of your origins, yet not your name." Salem pointed out.

The giant seemed to focus on Ozpin and Salem for a second before he answered.

What he answered with shocked the group.

"My name is Arc Prime."

**0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0 **

"I'll have to thank that guy." Qrow reminded himself as he finally found what looked like a bar.

He approached the counter and allowed himself in. "Him, Con' seems to know his stuff." He muttered as he picked up a bottle of whisky and rum.

"Mind setting a glass for me?" a voice from behind asked.

Qrow turned and was surprised to see the General of the Atlas military and headmaster to the hunter Academy, James Ironwood standing there.

"Sure, whatever." Qrow agreed as he turned back to making a beverage.

He spoke after hearing the tired general take a seat on the stool in front of the counter. "Ya know, figured you were more of a shooting-range-stress-reliever kind of guy." Qrow joked.

"And why's that?" James half-heartedly asked as he rested his head on his hand, elbow holding him up.

"Well from all the times you threatened to shoot me really." Qrow replied.

After a minute and still no drink, James started to become frustrated. "Qrow, anything will do." He hurried the man up.

"I'm making art here. You let your robots division take their time, why can't I?" and it seemed like Qrow was really focused on the cocktail he was making.

Finally he finished. He passed a glass to the general and poured two glasses. The two toasted but before they could down the burning liquid, they heard chatter heading towards them.

The two shared a look and nodded. If one of Salem's agent came through that door, they wouldn't let their guard up.

But two strangers instead walked in.

The both wore similar white armour with a black clothing under the armour. One had the colour orange painted on his shoulder pads, elbow guards, hands and knee pads with orange lines across his thighs and torso. His helmet completely covered his head with a black visor across his eyes and down his nose, above his eye was an addition to his visor which was also orange, he had a small antenna on his left shoulder.

His had the same armour but different additions and colour. He had blue painted markings in a single line across his arms, from the shoulder pads all the way to the backs of his hands, another set of lines on his knee pads.

His helmet shape was the same but the visor was different also, with painted lines that resembled eyes of some sort across his forehead.

He wore something that resembled a skirt called a Kama, with pistol holsters at his hips. He wore some kind of padding that rested on his shoulders, and ran along his chest, the left side offering more protection called a Pauldron.

Ironwood and Qrow stood straight at the sight of the two strangers. "Who are you?" Ironwood asked with authority in his voice.

Then suddenly the two armoured people stood at attention and saluted?

"Sir." Both greeted the now confused hunters. Though the voice sounded familiar.

"Mr. Arc?" James asked. The new comers shared a look that couldn't be deciphered under their helms.

"Sorry sir?" the one in orange question.

Qrow was getting tired of this "How's about taking those damn helmets off." He suggested.

The armoured duo shared another look and proceeded with the suggestion and rested the helmets under their arms.

Ironwood and Qrow were surprised by what was underneath.

Despite the different hair styles and one having a scar across the side of his head, the two resembled a certain blonde, hell they both looked like one another!

"I think I see the problem here." The blue one spoke.

"Kid, is that you?" Qrow was going crazy now. He would say he drank too much but that was just blasphemy.

"Not exactly but let us introduce ourselves." The twins saluted once again.

"My designation is clone commander 2224, otherwise known as Commander Cody. Commander of the 212th Attack Battalion. I serve under Jedi General James Ironwood of the grand army of the Republic." The orange clone, Cody introduced himself.

"My designation is Clone trooper 7567, my name is captain Rex, and I lead the 501st legion under my Jedi General Qrow Branwen." Rex followed along.

The huntsman were in shocked silence till Qrow piped up. "Im a what?"

Rex frowned "A Jedi sir."

"No after that."

"A General?"

"Yeah, that word there, I don't know whether to sink to my knees in despair or do the following…" Qrow then turned to Ironwood who felt a headache coming due to the shit eating grin on Qrow's face. "GUESS WHO'S A GENERAL BITCH!"

**0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0 **

"You think Con' recently made a nursey for us? Or is he just weird?" Terra asked her wife as they both sat in said nursey with baby Adrian happily playing with some toys, one happen to be a small action figure of his uncle Jaune.

Saphron chuckled as she took a picture of the toddler playing. "Either way, let's just be thankful we have someplace safe and fun for Adrian." Her smile seemed to falter, which Terra immediately picked up on.

"Something on your mind?" she asked. The blonde kept her lips sealed so Terra had to be more accurate.

"It's Jaune isn't it?" those sealed lips trembled slightly as she left her head drop into her hand with a little sob.

"He's my baby brother Ter' and I saw him die. Yeah it wasn't our Jaune but it's also not like seeing someone play dead in a film. He actually died, thousands of times if what the world implied is to be true. And I couldn't do anything!" she cried the last part out. Her baby brother died alone and in pain, no Saphron or mom or dad to help him. It nearly drove her mad! It was knowing that Jaune was nearby and holding Terra along with Adrian that helped her.

"Shh, shh. It's okay, Jaune's okay. Heck that other Jaune made that god of darkness look like an idiot and came out on top." Terra's words helped a little but it wasn't enough.

"Are you going to blame yourself for not being there for Jaune after every bump and bruise he's gonna get? Because I can tell you, you'll be crying all day. Saph. He's a fighter, you can't stop him, heck from what you told me he stole an old outdated weapon and put on some ratty armour as effective as cardboard and still went out there. That's who he is, you can't stop him. What you can do, is be there for him." Terra then hugged her still sobbing wife.

Saphron felt a tug at her trouser and looked down with watery eyes to see a blurry Adrian looking up at her with confused and worried eyes.

"M' m'?" he said, or at least tried.

Saphron let out another sob as she quickly yet gently scooped up the infant and held him close, like he was a life line.

Time seemed to drag on as the three sat in comforting silence as a family.

"Huh, usually I enter a room, say something then the crying starts." A familiar voice sounded off.

The parents' heads shot up to see Jaune, except he looked different, for one he wore a blue button up shirt that was wrinkled with brown pants and a brown suit jacket that was designed for more casual usage.

His hair had evidence of greying near the sides and middle along with an aged face, he also had a walking cane with printed fire on the bottom, similar to what race cars would have.

"Jaune?" Saphron asked.

"Yes, but actually no." he answered as he limped towards the pair.

"W-why do you have a cane?" the sister continued this game of 20 questions.

"I take it in your world, canes aren't used for medical reasons. Are wheelchairs also fashion statements?" he replied sarcastically.

"So you're not our Jaune, but one from another world?" Terra's question was more of an observation.

"Yep." "Jaune" said, popping the p. "In the interest of saving time, I'm Doctor Jaune House Arc. Most call me House or Arc. I am a board-certified diagnostician with a double specialty on infectious disease and nephrology. I was also dragged here against my will, thankfully I wasn't dealing with a patient so I guess that makes everything okay." He said with a stage smile.

He then reached for his pocket and pulled out a small container of pills before popping one in his mouth.

"And before you ask, no this is not candy I snuck in and no you can't have any."

Saphron and Terra looked at one another, this version of Jaune certainly was different from their brother (in law for one of them)

He then rubbed Adrian's head affectionately. "I also came to make sure this little guy was up to date on his vaccinations. If not then I'm going to have to make you feel like idiots and being family won't save you. There's a reason dear mother won't call me anymore unless it's an emergency and even then she has some reluctance."

Saph chuckled at this. Her tears from earlier whipped away from her eyes. "And why's that?" there was a story behind this and possibly a good one.

"Well she had a friend who brought in their kid who had swallowed a magnet, something that was stuck to a fridge and me explaining Darwin's theory to her may have made mama mad and she complained to mother so yeah."

The two mothers let out gasps but amusement danced in their eyes. "You didn't!" Terra didn't believe him. All the while Saphron was now laughing and thinking she was going to hell.

Maybe things will be okay for her Jaune, but for now, she was too entrapped by this Jaune's stories about the clinic where he worked.

**0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0 **

The Ace-ops found themselves heading towards what could be described as a dining hall, that or a high class cafeteria and walked in on a peculiar group that wasn't with them nor any other audience members.

They looked like that Arc kid but each different in a way.

For one they each looked older and donned full black and red armour.

One had long dark hair with a red headband wrapped around his head which had a small skull on it. On the left side of his face, he wore face paint that looked like a skull also. He was armed with two pistols on his hips with a combat knife strapped to his forearm.

Another had a sniper hanging from his back, he had a close shaved haircut with grey coloured hair and what looked like the crosshairs of a sniper scope tattooed around his right eye. He even had a toothpick between his lips.

The third guy had a different set of armour but still fit in with the rest. He wore a set of goggles or glasses and was leaner than the others with receding light brown hair. He had a large backpack with small antennas standing from it.

The fourth person was the largest of them all, while the rest stood at 6ft, he half a foot taller. His face showed various scars that was most likely earned from fights, his left eye was completely white and he was bald. Like himself, his armour was built for heavy duty. He had a machete holstered on his right leg.

The last look alike was more out of place with his white and blue armour, contrasting his comrades. His right arm was a prosthetic, he was also bald with some studs on his head.

"So where the reg's go off to?" the grey hair man asked his friends.

"Well Cody and Rex headed to some bar around here." Headband replied as he sharpened his knife.

"And we're not at said bar because?"

"Cause Wrecker was hungry and do you want to deal with a hangry Wrecker?" the grey haired one snorted.

Clover decided to step forward. "Hello." He greeted.

The 5 look alikes turned to the leader of the Ace-ops.

"You're that kid aren't you? John?" Marrow questioned.

Vine shook his head at his teammate, "His name is Jaune. He even told you this."

"Not exactly." The one with glasses spoke up. "You see, we are clones of him, bred and trained to serve the Republic army."

"So why do you look kind of different from him, only one of you look like him." Harriet asked, placing her hand on her hip.

"Well Echo here is a reg, we were made with mutations." The grey haired one answered.

"Can we get your names then?" Clover asked with a smile.

"Names Hunter. I lead this team." Hunter began as he started listing off his team. "This here is Wrecker." He gestured to the brute that was feasting on a chicken leg. "You ever need a tank moved by hand, ask him."

Hunter then waved his hand to the lean clone. "Next is Tech, the brains of our team, he can fill your head with pointless info, if he asks to observe you don't worry, he doesn't bite."

Tech walked up to the Atlas force "I here that people of your world have a unique gift called Aura and Semblances, you'll have to tell me everything about it."

Hunter continued. "This one is called Crosshair, try not to let him get to you, nor should you piss him off. Hell, flip him off 10 clicks away and he'll make sure you lose that finger." Crosshair looked to not care about being talked about but gave a glare to Marrow who gave his hand to shake. The Faunus meekly took his hand back.

"And our latest addition is Echo." Echo nodded in respect to the other team, who repeated the gesture.

"We're clone force 99, or you can call us the Bad Batch." Hunter finished.

Clover took it as his turn to introduce his squad. "Im Clover, my teammates are Harriet, Elm, Vine and Marrow." Each Ace operative giving a nod or greeting at the sound of their name. "We're the Ace-ops."

"You said mutations, what kind?" Vine asked as he and his team took seats with the Bad Batch.

"Tech, want to do your thing?" Hunter turned to his brother.

"Well, my mutation is that I have a greater input into science and skills with technology, including engineering, decryption, and language translation. Wrecker has increased muscle mass, making him bulkier than the average clone trooper, though the trade-off is that he's…" Tech was cut off by Crosshair.

"Stupid, immature, loud, annoying?" he grunted.

"I was going to say impulsive." Tech put it into more kind words.

"Damn right I am!" Wrecker shouted as he waved his food in the air.

Tech let out a sigh, showing he was use to this kind of behaviour. "Crosshair has enhanced eye sight which aid him in his marksman skills."

"And what's hunters? That he can deal with you guys?" Marrow snickered but shut up as elm elbowed his gut.

"No, he has enhanced senses, one of which allow him to feel electromagnetic signals, he has better navigation than any map you can find."

Vine hummed "So in a way, they are like semblances." He deduced.

Tech perked up at this. "Just what are semblances?"

"Well to understand that, you'll need a lesson on aura. Aura is the manifestation of a huntsman or huntress' soul, it shields us, protects us and used correctly can at times enhance us in strength, speed, reflexes. A semblance is gained by using your Aura to power it, a semblance itself is one's personal power so it varies from person to person, sometimes you'll have two people with similar semblances but different in some shape or form or pay off. This gift is also decided by your own personality, like mine. My semblance is having luck on my side." Clover explained as Tech took notes on his data pad.

"Fascinating!" he exclaimed.

Whilst they discussed Aura and Semblances into greater detail, Elm had taken a seat across from Wrecker, she eyed him up and down.

"So you're the muscle of your team?"

Wrecker tore another piece of meat with his teeth before responding. "Yup! You the same?" he pointed to her with the remaining chicken bone, all meat torn from it.

Elm smirked, that was an understatement really. "Damn right." She then reached for a chicken leg herself. She then felt another hand on hers and saw that it was Wrecker's hand.

The two stared at the joined hands before staring at one another with a look in both their eyes. They then joined hands and leaned towards one another.

Back to Clover and Hunter, the two leaders exchanged battle tactics and team attacks.

"Me and the boys have an attack plan, Plan 82, shock wave. We-." He was cut off from two cries, one female and the other male. Both reminding him of wild animals.

"ARGH!"

"HAAAA!"

He and everyone else looked to Elm and Wrecker who were in an intense arm wrestling contest with shark like grins etched onto their faces. Hunter could practically feel the electricity that shot from their eyes and at each other.

"YOU WANT THAT CHICKEN!? EARN IT!" Wrecker yelled as he put all his might behind his arm.

Elm didn't let up an inch. "I don't need to earn it! I'LL TAKE IT!"

Everyone else just stared dumbfounded or deadpanned at the duo.

"Is this their way of flirting?" Marrow whispered to Harriet who shook her head as she kept on looking at the pair.

**0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0 **

Ruby had headed for the forge, where else really. Accompanying her were Coco and Velvet. Velvet so she can get a look at other weapons and take some pictures and Coco cause Velvet dragged her. Her argument being "You drag me around the mall for clothes, I get to drag you around this time."

As they closed in to the workshop, they heard loud music coming from within. From the sounds of it, it was heavy metal music, the kind that edgy or Goth teens or even nice old grandmas would listen to.

They peered inside to see a large hulking figure at a table. He wore bulky green armour, his biceps exposed and his attention entirely on what looked like

"AH!" Ruby gasped as she zoomed to the table, not caring that the man standing there could very well Split her in half tear her in half.

"Is that a classic sawn off, double barrel shotgun with a double bladed grappling hook attached under the barrels?!" she squealed as she zipped around him.

"The shotgun alone would have a spread of up to twenty pellets and could practically erase whatever it's pointed at in close range and can still tear off a limb at medium range!"

"Heh, you know your stuff don't you?" Ruby stilled then finally looked at the face of the owner of such a magnificent instrument of destruction.

"Jaune!?" Coco and Velvet had appeared behind Ruby at her revelation.

"Vomit Boy?"

"J-Jaune?" both asked as "Jaune" chuckled.

"I may have his face, but I'm not the Jaune you guys know." He confessed.

"Oh so you're a Jaune from a different reality?" Velvet Coco asked.

"Yep, I was brought here and decided to upgrade this beauty while I could." He gestured to the shotgun.

"So what's the deal with your world?" Coco asked.

This Jaune chuckled, kinda darkly at the question. "I won't spoil it, but it's like Hell on Remnant." He vaguely responded.

"For now though." He put away his shotgun and from his back pack, pulled out the mother of all Miniguns.

Ruby felt her heart skip several beats, Coco felt wonderful pants feelings and Velvet wanted to take a picture of it so badly.

"Let me introduce you to my trusty chain gun." The man. No. Slayer, offered as he revved the gun to life and made the barrels split into three separate parts, 3 barrels on each set.

**0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0 **

"Cinder?" Emerald called out for the umpteenth time, Mercury just rolled his eyes as he followed her.

"We've been walking for hours and no sign of her, seriously she ditched us so why look for her?" the assassin asked annoyed, he was more interested in getting a good work out while he could.

"It's been only 5 minutes so quit your bitching Merc'. Besides, it's not like you have sore feet." She mocked making him scowl.

"Okay you know what-!" he started but was shut up when someone behind spoke up.

"What are you doing here androids?"

The two turned to see…

"Cinder!" Emerald cried out with glee as she saw her friend but paused to get a good look at the dark haired beauty. Instead of her current outfit, she was wearing her cat suit, barring the mask that went with it. Her scars were even healed up and arm normal. What had happened to her?

"Cinder" stood with her arms crossed and eyebrow raised at Emerald's behaviour. This wasn't like her, she was more stoic, only really being open with the blue haired weakling. "What's wrong with you?"

Mercury knew what was up. "You're not the Cinder we're with are you?" he dropped in a defensive stance, ready for a fight.

Cinder gained a predatory smile at this. "Oh so you're not 17? I bet you're a weaker version of him. And you wish to challenge me?" she goaded the young killer.

Mercury was about to lunge at her when Jaune came from behind Cinder. "What's up Cinder." he said with a huge smile at his friend. He then turned his attention to the others. "Hey 17, 18. Didn't think I'd see you guys here."

Now the criminal pair were confused. Arc treating Cinder kindly and even being nice to them. Emerald noticed the outfit Jaune was wearing and came to a realization.

"What a minute! You're that Jaune from the first universe we saw. That… uh siyan? Saying? No wait Saiyan!" her accusation made Jaune laugh as he tugged at his blue gi.

"Guess this is a dead give a way." He chuckled.

Mercury dropped his stance "What was that about androids?" he asked.

"Hmm?" Saiyan Jaune looked at the pair before he snapped his fingers. "Oh yeah, since you're different versions of our friends, you must not have become androids."

Saiyan Cinder snorted. "It took you that long to figure out?"

"Hey! It's not my fault, I'm still getting use to other versions of me and our friends." He protested.

"Hey!" The two aliens looked back to Mercury who didn't like being ignored.

"Oh yeah, sorry. Well in my world, you guys were turned into androids by Dr Merlot so that he can have you kill me, all 'cause I beat that Red Ribbon Army. He can sure hold a grudge." Saiyan Jaune explained which left more questions than answers.

"Tch, if you had killed them all then nobody would have been left to try and kill you Kakarot." Saiyan Cinder lectured her fellow fighter.

"Well it's not my fault! Besides I was a kid." Saiyan Jaune argued.

"So? I was a child yet I left no survivors when Salem ordered me to purge those planets." Saiyan Cinder retorted. "Your lack of drive is no excuse, nor you soft heartedness." She turned away with her arms crossed and eyes shut.

Saiyan Jaune looked at his Cinder for a few seconds before gaining a teasing smile. "Oh yeah, like you're not a big softie when it comes to little ember?" this made Cinder's eyes shoot open and face turn red.

"Shut up you dumb Bastard!" she demanded as the low class Saiyan laughed out loud.

"Emerald? Mercury?" the group of four turned to see another Cinder Fall, though this one was the original or at least looked like her with her black mask and long red dress.

"Cinder!" Emerald moved quickly towards the Maiden she knew and admired. However Cinder moved past her and up to her alien counterpart. The two amber eyes women had an intense stare down.

The atmosphere was tense and hot, the air was thick and it felt like gravity itself was trying to make them drop to their knees. Mercury and Emerald didn't know what to do here. Even Saiyan Jaune didn't want to get between this hot mess, one Cinder was a lot to deal with, one more and that was a nightmare coming true.

The staring contest seemed to stretch on for hours with no end in sight. Neither backing down.

Cinder let out her Maiden powers as fire burst from her eye and palm.

Saiyan Cinder didn't change from her crossed arm stance and immediately transformed into a super Saiyan, her dark locks turning gold and her orange eyes changing to teal.

Fiery Aura clashed against gold Aura. The ceiling above melted and the ground beneath caved in, sparks of lightning and embers of fire danced around the pair.

Saiyan Cinder then smirked before suppressing her Ki and dropping from her Super Saiyan state. "I can tell you're strong, good that I have yet to come across any weaklings that share my face." The alien then dropped her smirk and took on a serious look. "In your world, your work for Salem correct?"

The Fall Maiden looked at her counterpart funny, "Yes." She answered shortly, no reason to give away too much.

"Hmph, then may I make a suggestion and say get stronger and drop that dead weight, she may wish for you to grow more powerful in order to to help in her goals but the second you become a threat she'll drop you and replace you with a fresh face."

Cinder scowled at the Saiyan. "No, she wouldn't." she denied. Salem wasn't like that, Cinder meant a lot to her master, she knew it.

"Salem." Both Cinders turned to the low class Saiyan as he gained a thoughtful look. "I don't know about your world but in mine, she was the single most evil person I ever fought. And trust me I've gone against quite a few opponent."

It was true, Cell was evil but he was created and programmed to become the perfect being, the Saiyan cells along with Salem's somewhat made him believe he needed to destroy any one that stood in his way, a threat or not, in order to prove that. He was driven by an obsession that was programmed into his mind.

Majin Buu was another creation by the hands of someone lost to their own dark desire, but he was just a kid in mind, he didn't know right from wrong because he wasn't taught the value of life. Fat Buu was and he had become a good friend and trusted ally.

The god of Darkness destroyed life left and right but in a controlled manner, it was his job after all, something he was assigned less he be erased himself by beings more powerful than him. "Before creation, comes destruction." He would say, like it was drilled into his mind. And it was true, how many times was earth destroyed and rebuilt before life came to be on it?

But Salem? She had a desire to rule over all life with a cold, iron fist. To dictate the lives of those that would never impact hers. She wanted to rule the universe because she believe it was her right and that the lives of others didn't matter, not even her own followers of family. During her time in Hell, she'd have plenty of time to re-think everything she had done realise her mistakes but no, she allowed her hatred to guide and fuel her.

Saiyan Jaune looked at Cinder, not his one, "Maybe she's different in your world but I'd stay away from her and maybe figure out what to do with your life, there's more to it than just power and strength. You can help people, start a family or pass on your gifts. Lead a life that's worth remembering through love and family instead of fear and destruction."

Cinder scowled at the buffoon from a different reality. Oh it must be so easy with power they were born with. She had to struggle, fight and to get what she had now.

She was a little girl that had no one to hold her hand, to wait on her hand and foot, to read her bedtime stories after a nice hot dinner or bake her cookies. No, what she had was people dragging her by the hair, hit with the back of a hand or the blunt of a foot, locked in a room after being screamed or yelled at, her stomach would growl with sorrow as it went without food for the 3rd night in a row, not even able to cry tears after being denied even a shot glass of water.

One day she had enough and just burnt that hell hole down to the ground. Along with those inside.

That night the roles were reverse, now _she _could laugh at _their _torment and agony tills their voice boxes were shredded. Yet on that night she still cried.

The streets were unforgiving, preying on the weak, preying on _her_. One bastard thought he could use her for pleasure, until she sliced his throat were the broken glass she kept on her.

One day she was surrounded by Grimm, no way out, nobody to save her. No fairy tale knight to come galloping through the trees and slay the monsters, before taking her to a happily ever after.

No, what did come was her saviour, Salem.

Her words, her promises sent waves of euphoria through her body. Her gaze of motherly love made Cinder feel something other than pain. Though unbeknownst to her, those feelings covered the sense of dread that swelled at the look from those crimson orbs.

The hand she took was cold but she ignored it in favour of her own fantasises.

Her dreams could be fulfilled. All she had to do, was go with her.

Now however, she knew Salem was not as lenient, as forgiving nor as loving.

Now Cinder could see the monster that Salem was.

But she couldn't back out now.

She was too deep in the dark to ever come out.

And nobody could ever compare to her pain!

Before she could throw a retort, her counterpart interrupted. "Trust me, I was her errand girl for most of my life, she killed my father and people along with my home planet without a hint of remorse, only glee and used my potential to her desires."

Cinder couldn't speak at this. Her fists clenched and teeth grinded against one another.

Saiyan Cinder continued, knowing she needed to here this. "She may have promised you a life of power and luxury but your nothing more than a chess piece that can be replaced, you may not be a pawn but you will always be below the queen."

The tears in Cinder's one good eye evaporated from the fire that danced around it.

"You need to get away from her."

Those words seemed to break her as her shoulders shook and lip trembled. She pathetically looked at her other and Saiyan Cinder was reminded of the time she herself gave that look to Kakarot when she was dying after Salem's Ki blast pierced her lung and she was drowning in her own blood, sweat and tears.

"If I leave her. She'll haunt me forever." Cinder's words were barely above a whisper.

She had joined Salem for the promise of never being walked over, never being a victim, never being weak again, to hold the power over others for once.

She stayed for the fear of what the Grimm Queen would do to her if she ever tried leaving.

Jaune had quietly gone over to the assassin and thief. "Sorry about this." He whisper to the pair.

"What're y-." CHOP!

"Mer-!" CHOP!

Jaune had hand chopped at their nerve points. The two dropped into and unconscious state, the Saiyan managed to catch the pair before they hit the ground. He knew that both Cinders needed to be alone.

He looked over to his Cinder and gave her a nod, to which she repeated as he threw the underdogs over his shoulders and looked for a place to put them.

Back to the Cinder duet, the Saiyan princess just let Fall Maiden cry.

"How?" Cinder croaked.

"How did I what?" Saiyan Cinder had an idea what she meant, but wanted to hear it.

"How did you find a live after everything you've done? How did you find people, someone that would look at you other than a monster?"

The Saiyan stayed silent for a second and Cinder nearly let out another sob. Was there no answer to her question, was she doomed to a life of pain and lust for power?

"When I had first found Kakarot, I wanted to kill him. It was how it was meant to be, the Saiyan royalty showing the lower class clown his place in life. He had beaten me instead. It was infuriating, what's worse was the fact that I could have been killed so easily after our fight, but no. He let me go, even if it meant I could come back and kill him and those he held dear.

For years, I desired nothing more than to be better than Kakarot. To prove my superiority against him. Yet I could never close the gap between us, should I get ahead, he would find a way to over pass me, my destiny thrown to the way side again and again and again. He ever saved my life as if I were a helpless child. He had stolen my honour and his debts… must be paid. That lead to my stay on the planet he called home and despite wanting nothing to do with the weak earthlings I was around them seemingly constantly.

As time went on and my goal to beat him continued, I found myself against enemies that wanted Kakarot and his planet dead, I couldn't allow them to steal that privilege from me. So I would combat these foes and unintentionally saving the world and before I knew it, I was a protector of that world which I began to call home. I had settled down, formed a family. Hpmh. I had even grown quite fond of them.

Over time, I still wanted to be better than Kakarot, but I found myself becoming his ally, someone he could trust to fight beside him and I him." Saiyan Cinder closed her eyes as thoughts of the gentle Saiyan filled her mind. Thoughts of her family and little Ember.

"I would never accept him as my friend, but he accepted me as his. Ever after everything I done before… and during my time on earth." She felt a burning sensation on her forehead, shaped in the letter M.

Saiyan Cinder looked her parallel in the eye. "In the beginning, things won't be easy, people will judge you on your past actions, rightly so and want nothing to do with you. Those that try to get you to open up will be pushed away by you yourself. But in time, you will find something with them. You will find a home, friends, family and a life."

Cinder stared at her other as tears streamed down her undamaged face.

**0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0 **

**A/N: so yeah that's part one, people meeting different Jaune's instead of just watching them.**

**This idea was inspired by **_**12interestingname34.**_** Check out his works as he also does a multiverse fic about Jaune and is good at what he does.**

**I hope everyone is doing good and staying safe during these times, hopefully we won't be stuck at home for much longer and I will see you all later.**

**Stay tuned for PART 2!**


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: Hello everyone, I hope you enjoy this chapter, I know I enjoyed making it and it took forever! Thankfully though I had some help from these two guys.**

**gorillageek27 from tumblr who gave me the idea to make this with his post on Jaune being in a death battle, check out his stuff on tumblr if you're a fan of Jaune or just RWBY in general. He was very generous with letting me use that death battle preview post he made. If you want to see the post he made for this then just type in "Death Battle" on his page and it should pop up.**

**And ****Masseffect-TxS who helped me with the fight coordination and a helpful inspiration, cause at first I literally had no idea how to do the fight, the start middle and end and I thought "Who can make awesome fight scenes" and I remembered his works like Restart and New King of Darkness and sought out his help. He was super helpful and kind, despite having his own projects to deal with. I made a few changes but still a lot of help from these two so be sure to check both out cause they make good stuff and generally cool guys.**

**Also, while I did say the audience would encounter a couple alternate Jaunes, I plan on doing more of that, but at different breaks so to speak.**

**None the less, let's get it on!**

**0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0 **

Kali, despite living in a place where temperature below 20*C was considered a myth, liked the snow, the small snowflakes that descended from the cloudy sky peacefully and even seeing the innocent youth playing around in it, making snow-angles, snow-men and having snow-ball fights.

She also enjoyed the perks of it being appropriate to enjoy some hot coco, sitting by a roaring fire with her family and snuggling in the warm clothes of sweaters and scarfs.

So when she had found a room that looked like a winter wonderland, with its own actual trees, a nearby lake that even had some wildlife treading or flying around, the Belladonna mother couldn't refuse, especially when a set of warm clothes and jacket appeared out of nowhere for her to use.

So that's where she was, taking a calm stroll through the land of white.

Kali then looked into the lake and was taken by its simple beauty, it was so clear, so transparent. Like no other collection water could compare.

As she stared at her own reflection, small ripples disrupted the flow of the lake, Kali looked up to see a deer drinking at the other end of it.

What was fascinating about this creature however, was that its fur was just as white as the snow that surrounded them, its horns could be mistaken for tree branches if not for the blue highlights that seemed to pulse lightly every now and then.

And its eyes. Instead of natural orbs of black, it was instead an electric blue to match the horns.

The deer looked up at Kali, matching her gaze as it took in her ears much like she did its unique features.

Kali slowly raised an open palm out towards the magnificent animal, wanting it to come closer, the deer stood still for a few seconds before it carefully lifted a leg forward, trying to sense some form of trap. When it found none, the deer let its hoof touch the ground before putting another leg forward.

Suddenly the deer stopped in its tracks, its head shooting up and looking side to side, its ears moving wildly.

Kali understood why, with her own set of ears, she too heard the snapping of a twig from behind the deer.

Kali slowly stood up but a panicked voice cried out.

"WATCH OUT!"

Kali threw herself to the ground on her left as the deer moved suddenly to its own left, a THUNK was heard before the deer ran off in a random direction, away from Kali and into the forest.

Kali, still on the ground, moved her body so that she was resting on her behind and her hands keeping her balanced.

She looked to where she stood moments earlier and in its place was an arrow!

If Kali had to guess, had the deer not moved so quickly, the arrow would have been embedded into the back of its skull instead of the ground to her right.

Her heart was racing with adrenaline but frozen in shock.

Suddenly footsteps were heard heading towards her and fast.

From a gathering of rocks that were behind the deer, a young girl came from the gap, her breath showing in the cold air as she panted.

She saw the downed but uninjured woman and made her way to her, not caring that she soaked her legs in the cold lake as she made a small splash in it.

She kneeled down beside Kali and her eyes were roaming the Faunus' form as she checked for any injuries.

"Oh Gods, I'm so sorry! I- I didn't mean to, I was just aiming for the deer and then it moved- I- I didn't see you in front of it!" the young girl rambled as she apologised.

Kali took a second to collect herself and shook her head "I-im fine, it's okay. Your very, very sharp arrow didn't hit me. "Kali said with a shaky voice, looking to the arrow as she mentioned it.

The girl helped the mother up, which surprised Kali with how little effort the young girl seemingly used.

"I'm sorry." She repeated.

Before Kali could calm her down, a voice broke out.

"Girl!"

From the same rock formation, came a man, wait. Wasn't that one of Blake's friends? Jaune? But he looked different.

Instead of the armour that covered his arms, chest and torso, he wore a thick leather pauldron with bearskin covering his back, which was held in place by a thick belt strap that wrapped around his torso. Gone were his white and gold gauntlets but now wrists wrappings with dried up bloodied stains on them, his left arm adorned with a circular shield of gold, he finished the look with black, stitched pants and thick heavy boots.

His build was different as well, more muscular and a large stab wound on his stomach that had become a large, faded scar under the test of time with stitching holding the flesh together.

He even had a thick beard and a strange red tattoo painted in a spiral which started on his shoulder and finished down his head, past his eye and to his cheek.

"Father!" the girl said as he approached the two.

"What happened." his voice reminded Kali of her husbands, full of authority but a touch of concern hidden away.

"I was aiming for the deer, by the time I let go of the bowstring I noticed the lady but it was too late to stop it, I yelled out for her to move so luckily she's alright." The girl said quickly, both adults barely keeping up with her.

"Jaune" looked at Kali "I apologise. You are unharmed?" he asked her. Even his voice was different. Deeper and more rough.

"Yes, im fine. I was just about to explain to your daughter that it was just an accident, which thankfully, no one was hurt from." She said as she sent a kind smile to the young girl.

"Jaune" nodded before turning "Then we can continue." He said as he picked up the arrow and moved towards where the deer ran off to.

"But father, shouldn't we-."

"She claims to be without injury, you have apologised and the situation was been handled. We have a deer to hunt. Come" He ordered as he kept on moving, not turning to look at his little girl while he said that.

Before he could disappear, Kali stopped him. "Wait, wait, wait." She moved in front of him. "You're name wouldn't happen to be Jaune? Would it?"

This stopped the man in his tracks as he looked her in the eyes, his own narrowed in suspicion as his hand rested on the. Okay he had an axe, a rather intimidating one at that. How had she not noticed that earlier?

"How do you know that name." his tone made her Faunus instincts start screaming "Danger!" as if the axe hadn't already. He was not someone to be messed with, and here was Kali, pushing a big red button.

"Oh it's just that I was watching that thing! About you and your friends!" she quickly assured him, not wanting to be on the wrong end of that menacing looking axe. Did she mention the axe?

"Hold on father. She may be from one of those different worlds that guy was talking about! The one that brought us here." The girl deduced.

"That's the one!" Kali agreed as Jaune allowed his hand to drop from the axe.

"Did you say this bundle of joy had friends?" another voice asked. Kali looked around, trying to locate the voice but strangely it came from Jaune.

"Aye love, down here!" the voice called with a whistle following.

Kali followed the directions and was no staring at Jaune's waist.

You see, what with the near death experience of the arrow, the sharp axe and now the sight of a decapitated yet talking head of an old man with goat horns on his fore head. This lead to Kali doing the only appropriate thing.

Which was fainting.

**0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0 **

Ruby was busy gushing over the weapons Jaune, or as he preferred "Doom Slayer", had laid out before her. Seriously! Plasma rifles! Heavy machine guns with rocket projectiles! A shotgun with interchangeable barrels! A gun that was literally called the "BIG FUCKING GUN 9000"!

The young rose was in gun heaven but something caught her eye, she saw a flash of red hair walk past the door to the forge.

Ruby wanted to stay with these creations of a gun Deity but something told her to go for that flash of red.

Managing to pull herself away from the guns, Ruby leaned out from the door frame and peered out, the same flash of red just turned out of sight from behind a corner, so Ruby followed on.

Ruby managed to catch up to the mystery person and saw that it was Pyrrha!

"Pyrrha!" Ruby called as she rushed towards the Spartan.

Pyrrha was trapped in her own mind as she walked aimlessly through the halls.

Being revived to witness the man she loves in different worlds and seeing him either fight other worldly beings or slaughter men of militaries, even one world in which he is married to the monster that killed her!

It was too much for her to handle.

She was startled from her thoughts when a voice she remembered all too well called to her.

"Pyrrha!"

Said girl spun toward to on coming reaper and nearly fell from the hug that followed. Despite the ambush of affection, Pyrrha smiled and hugged her dear friend back. Tears stung her eyes for a second before she managed to school her features and look at her fellow huntress who had no reservations about letting her own tears loose.

"P-Pyrrha! Im… im…!" that was as far as she got before she was pulled into another hug.

"Don't you dare apologise." Ruby froze at the quiet order from Pyrrha. "None of what happened was your fault. Do you understand me? You did your best and you took care of Jaune when i… when I failed. For that I am forever grateful." The red head assured Ruby.

"But if I was quicker! If I had-!"

"If you had been quicker than your team would have lost their leader and Jaune would have lost two people he cherished. You're stronger Ruby. Stronger than you can imagine, but Cinder would have over powered both of us. It was my own arrogance that cost me my life."

Ruby sniffled some before speaking once more. "You're wrong about Jaune. I didn't help him, I just watched from the side while he was hurting, I didn't know how to help him." she sobbed.

Pyrrha stroked the younger girl's hair. "No ruby, you did do something, you gave him a purpose, Jaune is the kind of person that will drop everything he's doing to help a friend, and when you moved forward, determined to get to Mistral, Jaune saw this and followed you. If not then Jaune may have been completely swallowed by the darkness that he faces. You were the light he needed. And still needs."

Pyrrha felt the usually chipper Goth tighten her hold on her and done the same.

The duo stayed like this for Gods know how long.

"Come now." Pyrrha finally broke from the hold as she looked into the silver orb of Ruby Rose.

"I believe there is a training room somewhere nearby and I think we both need to let out some stress." This made the reaper smile as both headed for said room.

**0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0 **

Later, everyone, despite being in separate locations, here Con' on throughout his home world.

"Can all viewing guests please return to the theatre?" He asked. His voice echoing out loud.

Everybody gradually found themselves back to the viewing room at different times.

Salem pretended not to notice, less she draw unnecessary attention to herself and her subordinates but she noticed that Cinder seemed to be sitting a bit further away from her, not the entire group of her inner circle but still a few seats between the Grimm queen and the maiden, using Emerald, Mercury, the ginger and mute to take up those seats. This was not a good sign, was her dark Maiden keeping away from her? Was it because of the boy? This will not do, especially if Ozpin clocked onto that himself.

Ghira had sat back down beside his daughter but looked around. "Where is Kali?" he wondered out loud. Blake, hearing this, started to look around herself.

"Here." A voice spoke to the pair.

Both turned and saw the same Jaune who Kali had found in the winter wonderland, they reacted negatively, reason was because Kali was unconscious in his arms.

"Mom!"

"Kali!" both husband and daughter shouted at the sight of her.

The panther Faunus quickly scooped up his wife into his own arms. Kali seemed to have some consciousness to her as she snuggled into his arms with a smile once she felt the familiar hold of her Ghira.

"What happened? What did you do?!" now Ghira is a peacekeeper, he doesn't like to use violence unless absolutely necessary, but with some random guy holding his knocked out wife, his Kali? All bets were off.

This alternate Jaune didn't seem too fazed. "Nothing, it was the woman who collapsed when the head spoke to her." He explained like he was discussing the weather.

"What head?" Blake asked.

"Down here lass." A second voice spoke. Both Faunus looked to see a handing head attached to the other Jaune's belt.

Ghira had wide eyes while Blake nearly threw up at the sight.

The head seemed offended. "Oi! I'm not that ugly, if anything I could charm the nickers off a Valkyrie even without ma body."

All were interrupted when Kali started to groan and her eyes open slowly. "G-Ghira?" she asked.

"Don't worry dear, I have you." He calmly walked to their seats and gently sat her down.

"Oh honey. It was so strange, I remember being in some snowy area, a dear with white fur, an arrow, an axe, a very, very sharp axe at that, and a talking head."

"Let's just not think about that dear."

As everyone was seated, Con' made his appearance.

"So, onto the next viewing shall we?" Con said as he turned to the portal but he then overheard Clover speak.

"Harriet, you okay?" He turned to look at the speedster and saw her puling a face.

"Is something the matter Miss Bree?"

She was silent, seemingly trying to figure out what to say. "It's just, why are we here?"

Marrow snorted. "Losing your memory Har'? We're here to watch worlds based on Jack."

"Okay we both know that was intentional." Jaune deadpanned.

"Not that, why are we watching these, from what you said, these are alternate realities, for all we know this kid could die in just a few days' time or get an injury that stops him from fighting and just have no effect on our lives at all." Harriet explained.

"Excuse you?" Pyrrha stood up along with Ren and Nora, all three sharing similar dark looks at the Ace member as Jaune tried to calm them down.

Harriet wasn't deterred. "I'm being realistic, none of these worlds could have any real connection to ours besides the people in them and I don't see the point in watching them. Also this isn't some happy fairy tale world where everyone makes it out okay, he can die and no offense, you're proof of that."

Jaune suddenly stopped trying to calm his team down and looked at Harriet. "You want to repeat that."

Clover could see where this was going. "Harriet enough." He ordered.

"No, no. if she has something to say." Jaune didn't mind when others talked about him but involve his team, involve Pyrrha? That's a line crossed.

Harriet, being goaded, decided to fire back. "What kid, you think you can even touch me?" she stood up. Clover got up and put his hand on her shoulder, the rest of the Ace ops stood as well, Marrow to restrain her. Elm got up to show support for her friend whilst Vine was a combination of the two, willing to try and resolve the situation but will help his team mate if necessary.

"Oh I know you can beat me. Just know you're gonna lose some teeth doing it." Jaune glared back.

Mercury snickered. "Screw the portal, the entertainment's right here."

Ironwood had enough. "Bree, stand down this instant." Harriet did so without question. The general then turned to the younger hunter. "Mr Arc, now is not the time for this, calm down now." Jaune threw a glare at the Ace op before turning to the General and nodded with a hard look.

Qrow spoke towards his friend. "Was expecting you to jump in Oz'."

Ozpin looked back at his comrade before turning away. "Forgive me but I was more interested as to why our host is silent when he usually deals with disputes." The audience turned to the still god as he seemed to be pondering something.

"Hmm." He then turned to his captives (Let's be honest that's what they are.) "Change of plans children, Speedy Gonzales just gave me an idea. She's right, so why not watch and learn what your Jaune Arc can do. The following universe will be showing bits of Jaune's past, present and future though only as far as im allowed to see, even I have limits as to how far I can go."

"Wait, so this world is going to be ours?" Roman said with a puff from his cigar, thankfully the smoke was filtered so that it didn't bother anyone, especially baby Adrian.

"How far into the future." Ozpin asked, wanting an advantage though deflated as he realised Salem would see the same things, evening the playing field.

"How far into the past exactly?" Jaune cringed at the thought of his childhood while Saphron snickered, as if she knew what he was afraid of revealing.

Constellation answered. "From say the beginning of Beacon and a few months after the time in which I pulled you all from." Making Jaune sigh in relief.

"What exactly are we watching?" Hazel crossed his giant arms as he awaited.

"Well. In my opinion, the best way to get to know someone is in a fight. Whether you watch it or be a part of it and what better fight to watch than a death battle."

The portal swirled to life.

_***DEATHBATTLE INTRO MUSIC***_

**The portal started off with two walls coming together with the words 'DEATH' on one and the other 'BATTLE', chains swung from the air, bloodied and clashing with one another as razor sharp spikes filled the bottom of the screen and a fire off screen lit up the crimson screen.**

"Oh that seems pleasant." Weiss snorted.

"Pleasant? Try badass and awesome!" Yang hyped it up as Weiss could only roll her eyes.

"Seems barbaric." Whitely was not amused.

**Wiz: "Being the saviour of the world is a tough job and the only the best of the best are suited for that title."**

**Boomstick: "these two aren't really what I'd call the best, at least at the beginning but they've totally proven me wrong."**

**Wiz: "Jaune Arc, leader of team JNPR and huntsman of Remnant."**

**A picture of Jaune during volume 7 is shown with the title JAUNE ARC**

**Boomstick: "and Agent Washington, leader of the reds and blues and freelancer agent."**

**The same is done for Wash with the title AGENT WASHINGTON**

**Boomstick: "He's Wiz and I'm Boomstick."**

**Wiz: "and it's our job to analyse their weapons, armour and skill to find out who would win a DEATHBATTLE!"**

**A small teaser of the fight to come is shown before being cut off by two metal doors slamming together.**

**Wiz: "We've gone over similar fighters from Remnant and its history before."**

**Boomstick: "But we've decided to give you a refresher, this world is full of nasty beasts of the dark, called the Grimm and ain't no normal military can stop them. That's where Hunters step in. Yeah! When there's something Grimm!… in the kingdom!... Who you gonna call? GRIMM HUNTERS!"**

**Wiz: "like all living things in Remnant, humans and Faunus have what is called Aura to fight back against the soulless creatures of Grimm. But just having Aura isn't enough."**

**Boomstick: "You have to be the most badass and capable fighters if you want to be a huntsman or huntress. And that is what the Arc family is known for producing and the Arc to carry on this tradition is non-other than Jaune Arc. But he's not exactly what you'd expect."**

**BACKGROUND**

**-Full name: Jaune Miles Arc.**

**-height: 6'1"/185.42 cm**

**-age: 19**

**-Homeland: unknown.**

**-Seven sisters.**

**-Leader of team JNPR**

**-Official Huntsman**

"Seven sisters?!" many of the younger audience exclaimed as they swerved towards Jaune who just nodded.

"Dude, do your parents have any other hobbies?" Neptune asked as sun laughed.

"Seven? I can hardly deal with one." Qrow downed his drink as Raven gave him the finger.

"How did you survive?" Whitely asked.

"I can be very annoying." Jaune said proudly before he curled up into a shivering mess as his pupils dilated like that of a cats. "It was my only way of survival." He whispered.

"We weren't that bad." Saphron denied.

"I was your walking-talking doll and the walking-talking were sometimes restricted." Jaune huffed.

"If you didn't move and complain as much you would be allowed to be a walking-talking doll." She teased back.

"Is that why you can pull off a dress better than some of the girls back at Beacon?" Yang stroked the fire.

Oscar snorted. "What?" Jaune playfully glared at his friends who muffled their laughter and failed. "Oh please, you were just jealous I had a better chest to show off." He shot back.

"Really VB?" yang then gestured to her 'girls' "Better than this." He avoided looking at the compelling view. She had won this round.

**Wiz: "Jaune arc was the last person anyone would expect to become a protector of Remnant. Born into a family of hero's Jaune always thought that he had a lot to live up to, especially since his father was a famous and powerful Huntsman while his grandfather fought in the Great War."**

Weiss could relate, knowing what it was like growing up with expectations from others.

**Boomstick: "Jaune grew up hearing the stories of the feats of many Arcs before him and wanted to follow in the family footsteps but dear old dad decided that wouldn't be the case and refused to train him. Damn and I thought my dad was a jerk, well I think was if he was around. But seriously I feel for the kid, it's like telling me about the greatest beer in the world and not letting me have any."**

"Wait if he wasn't trained by his family then did he go to a school like signal?" Taiyang asked.

"I don't think that's the case, why send him to a hunting school if they don't want him to be one in the first place?" Willow said.

Jaune and students that knew of his transcripts were silently sweating on the blonds behalf. Pyrrha avoided eye contact while Ruby awkwardly coughed.

"Kid could have just learnt by himself, I know I did with Raven." Qrow mused.

Glynda gave Ozpin a look to which he looked back and in his eyes he said 'was the outcome at all negative?' Glynda turned away with a huff.

**Wiz: "however Jaune's obsession with being a hero lead him to doing something very drastic and well, something I'd have to give him credit for."**

Roman's eye widened as he smirked "No fucking way."

**Boomstick: "Jauney boy faked his transcripts to attend a school of asskicking! A school known as… PROFESSOR XAVIER'S SCHOOL OF-!"**

**Wiz: "Beacon academy."**

**Boomstick: "Aww."**

"WHAT!?" was the majority outcry from the audience. Roman only laughing as his thoughts were proven true.

"Oh crap." Jaune muttered.

"Faked transcripts?!" Ironwood yelled.

Clover looked at the teenager. "You do know that's cause for arrest right?" falsifying transcripts to get into hunter academies was seen as a serious crime, it could mean the difference between life and death and not always towards the offender.

Nora was the first to Jaune's defence. "Look, we all understand that this looks bad…"

"Looks bad? It is bad! And he's your leader, his decision could get you and others killed!" Harriet was flabbergasted by the lack of reaction. "And you knew about this?" now the whole of team JNPR could be arrested for hiding something this serious. Mistral certainly won't be happy with their "Goddess of victory" being behind bars.

"Ozpin did you know of this?" James asked his friend. Did Ozpin really allow someone without the necessary training into what was seen as the best academy, he knew that the Arc was lacking in fighting capabilities but not a lack of previous learning. What next? He was hiding a former terrorist or someone that destroys midnight clubs?

"James, we both know how long I've been alive, do you really think I wouldn't recognise forgery when I see it?"

"And you're acting like this is no big deal?!" the general was now livid by the casual reply.

"I'm acting like this because I know what I done and because I saw something within Mr Arc, you and I both know of the Arc family's history of warriors. Having that talent and potential on our side was and still is a good decision, even if Mr Arc is behind his peers, and with this… 'Death battle' we can find out more about said potential." The wizard answered with a calm yet confident voice, not at all regretting said decision.

Winter noticed how quiet her sister was, even if her attitude had improved, she would still have something to say about such actions from the Arc. Unless… "Sister, did you also know about this?"

"…Well… yes I did." She huffed out when she couldn't come up with anything else.

"And why did you not report this?"

"Because we asked her not to." Winter looked at Pyrrha.

"We? Not him?" Winter gestured to Jaune who was only looking at the portal, not facing anyone.

"On the contrary Winter, it was he who told us his secret and even said that we could report him if we wished, it was his team mates that begged us to give him a chance."

"And why does that hold any significance?"

"While Nora does seem to be the kind that would be okay with this, it was Pyrrha's and Ren's judgment I believed, while Pyrrha's is somewhat… biased, Ren knew that he and his partner Nora were also at risk and still gave him a chance." Weiss at first didn't like it, even felt betrayed when Ruby, Blake and Yang accepted Jaune without issue, but when Blake's past came to light, it became easier to understand. Yang's reasoning was simple. "Kinda badass and he survived the initiation, gotta give him credit there."

"Glynda please tell me you didn't know." Ironwood pleaded.

"I did at first have reservations about this." Ironwood silently cursed. "But as time went on I saw him grow, his fighting style, his temperament, drive and knowledge improving far more than a few students that entered legally, not letting himself become arrogant or over confident. Did I treat him harshly? Yes. Did he earn his place at Beacon? Certainly. Would I do it again? Without a doubt."

The other Beacon staff chipped in. "His academics were certainly lacking but he is intelligent, just needed a better understanding and his grades did improve greatly once he knew what he was doing, getting higher marks in written work and theory." Oobleck shot out quickly as Port nodded in agreement.

"He's even one of the few that gets the hidden meaning and lesson in each of my tales and classes. Staying back and asking if his assumptions were correct."

"You see James, while what he did was outside the confines of the law, he has yet to let me down."

Ironwood opened his mouth to argue but was interrupted. "Perhaps we should continue the viewing and see for ourselves." Ghira attempted to sooth, knowing that it would only go around in circles.

Kali nodded "We have the means to do so and besides, it's too late to take any kind of action ever since Beacon fell."

At this, the commotion stopped though some sent glances at Jaune who only ignored it, though in his mind, he kept only repeating one thing.

'They should have exposed me, maybe then Pyrrha would have gotten someone better and would have saved her!'

**Wiz: "Since Jaune had received no real training before, life at Beacon was a bit rough. He was bullied since the moment he arrived, but his desire for being a hero and helping others made him put up with the constant torture from his peers. Particularly Cardin Winchester."**

**Boomstick: "Who is your typical douche bag jock. Though one student decided to help the poor bastard out and who better to train him than Pyrrha Nikos herself? Who was the best fighter and student of Beacon and just so happened to be his teammate and partner. She also had a major crush on the guy."**

Pyrrha blushed at that.

**Wiz: "while Jaune did refuse at first due to his pride, he did go back to her after getting an eye opener and decided that just being an Arc wouldn't cut it."**

**PERSONALITY**

**Wiz: "Jaune was a goofy, optimistic and all-around friendly person. He treats everyone equally and had no problem expressing himself to strangers and bonds with others easily."**

**Boomstick: "he also has some hard core loyalty for his friends and team. Once when Cardin found out about Jaune's lack of training, he black mailed him into being his errand boy and ordered Jaune to pull a dangerous prank on his teammates but Jaune refused, despite his dreams of being a huntsman were on the line."**

***Clip of Jaune standing up against Cardin* **_**"I don't care what you do to me… but you are not messing with my team."**_

RWBY and NPR smiled at the blushing Jaune "Oh come on, I'm sure you would have done the same."

Kali smiled to her husband "It seems like our kitten has some good friends."

**Wiz: "though despite the rigorous training, the mind straining lessons and the hard life Beacon tried to prepare him for, nothing would ever prepare him for the greatest tragedy he's experienced."**

The former Beacon students and staff's eyes widened, knowing what they meant.

***Pyrrha's death at the hand of Cinder***

Jaune clenched his fists till blood leaked as his nails dug into his skin and hit teeth nearly cracked from the pressure they were under. 'It's my fault, my fault.'

Pyrrha didn't know how to react, seeing her death from a different perspective was mind boggling.

Ruby shut her eyes as her eyes flashed briefly, even with that talk with Pyrrha earlier, it still hurt. Summer held her daughter as she saw this and Nora practically moulded to Ren's side as she looked away. Yang, Blake, Weiss, Coco, Velvet, Sun and Neptune held their heads down, a moment of silence for the loss of a good person, amazing fighter and great friend. Others done the same. Cinder would normally have relished in the victory against the "Invincible champion" but this time it just felt off, damn did that previous world affect her so much? Not to mention her talk with her alternate self.

It was frustrating what she was going through, throughout her life, she learnt that hesitation and sympathy was a weakness and now that weakness was affecting her.

**Boomstick: "oh that is harsh, what makes it worse is that Pyrrha confessed to the guy, kissed him and sent him away through a rocket propelled locker. Some serious counselling is probably needed."**

**Wiz: "After this Jaune changed, he became somewhat cynical, being angry at the likes of Ozpin and Qrow, even accusing Ruby's uncle for using her as bait despite trying to justify Cardin during Beacon. He blames himself for not being able to save Pyrrha which has led him to grieving only when he is alone and training late at night to recording of his late partner. This had caused a sense of regret and hatred to not only Cinder but also himself."**

*****_**Clip of Jaune listening to Pyrrha's video***_

Pyrrha watched closely as she saw what Jaune was doing to himself, yes she had made those videos to help him should she not be there to help him train but… not like this. This wasn't training, this was just torture.

Pyrrha was seeing the deeper affects her death had on Jaune. 'What have I done? I didn't want any of this'. Had she thought this through then Jaune would never have gone through such pain.

After Ozpin had offered her the opportunity or curse now, to become to next Fall Maiden due to her strength and skill, Pyrrha had believed that it was her destiny, Cinder taking the powers was only a test of that path on destiny, she had believed that she was meant to fight and beat Cinder to become the next Maiden.

Maybe it was her not truly knowing what a Maiden could do, maybe it was her own ego, even Ozpin failed to stop Cinder, what made her thing she could beat the agent of Salem? Her status as the Invincible Girl? Goddess of Victory?

Pyrrha now knew that it was her fault that she had lost to Cinder which led to her team and partner going down a dark path, but now she would do whatever she could to fix that.

First thing was to get rid of that video and talk with Jaune.

**Boomstick: "though after some needed talking to with his other teammates he began to heal. D'aww that's nice."**

**EQUIPMENT**

**Crocea Mors**

**Sword and shield.**

**Can merge the two to make great sword**

**Holds gravity dust**

**Can create hard-light shield.**

**Body armour.**

**Boomstick: "now that we got the mushy stuff outta the way, show me what he's got! One thing I like about Remnant is that every weapon is a gun! It's paradise."**

"Oh yeah because having soulless monsters at our walls is paradise." Whitely snorted.

**Wiz: "well not every weapon, Jaune's being one of them."**

**Boomstick: "Aw what!? Well what does he use?"**

**Wiz: "Jaune wields a sword and shield which has been passed down from warrior to warrior in his family, this sword is known as Crocea Mors."**

**Boomstick: "seriously? Just a sword and shield? Lame."**

"Hey." Jaune said slightly offended.

Clover thought about his own weapon but knew he would never change it for the world, it had saved him more times than he could count.

**Wiz: "wait a second boomstick as this isn't just some old sword, while true at first glance this sword isn't all that impressive compared to others it has gotten Jaune out of some of the toughest situations before."**

**Boomstick: "wait, you said this thing's been passed down for generations but it kinda looks new, man they must take good care of it."**

**Wiz: "well this is where it becomes interesting, you see the metal and materials of Crocea Mors has never needed a toon up or fixing, it's never even needed sharpening."**

Some of the people who wielded weapons couldn't help but feel just a tad bit jealous, a weapon that didn't need constant maintenance and worked just fine? Ruby loves her baby Crescent Rose but she would love to find a material that didn't chip or crack.

**Boomstick: "what? But it's like, super old right? Then again I guess that explains why Jaune likes it so much. It's strong enough to slice through all kinds of Grimm in just one strike and the shield doubles as a sheath so Jaune is never without either of the two but Jaune decided it was time for an upgrade."**

**Wiz: "he can use his shield in its sheath mode and add his sword to it to transform his weapon into a great sword, increasing its size, strength and damage capabilities though does sacrifice defence but after being accepted into Atlas he was given more upgrades."**

"Accepted into Atlas?" Seinna questioned.

"I doubt it was to learn like other students." Ilia mused.

'They must have acquired a relic or gone looking for the relic in Atlas if that's the case, and if so, I would most definitely accept them into our ranks' Ironwood thought.

**Boomstick: "His shield can now increase its defences by its hard light projection and has gravity dust added to the mix. But even before these add-on's, Crocea Mors has stopped a deathstalker stinger, hold up against major Ursa, block fire balls from Manticore and maidens alike. He can even use said shield to make shock waves to disorientate his foes, leaving them open to attack. While it can't turn into a gun, I'd happily kill my enemies with this."**

"Guess Jaune got with the times with that old thing." Coco smiled.

"And despite its history and years of use, it seems to be in top condition." Velvet followed up, wanting to snap a picture of it.

"I wonder if I can find something like that for Crescent Rose." Ruby already had ideas on how to improve her weapon and to ask Jaune if she could analyse his weapon, that or borrow it without his knowledge. (Word of the day children is: stealing)

**ABILITIES AND FEATS**

**-Enhanced strength.**

**-Enhanced speed.**

**-Exceptional tactician.**

**-Enhanced durability**

**-Can learn things faster than others.**

***clips of Jaune fighting Grimm, head butting Ursa and fighting Geist and Nuckelavee***

"Wait hold up!" Nora made an X with her arms.

"Did he just?" Sun began

"Head butt an Ursa?" Neptune finished.

"He didn't just head butt it, he full bodied it!" Yang laughed.

"Talk about using your head in a fight." Taiyang snorted.

"Ah yes! It reminds me of the time…" Port was thankfully cut off as the portal started back up, making him huff while Oobleck comforted his friend as other sigh in relief.

**Wiz: "Jaune is a tactician and a fairly good one at that, he can come up with plans on how to defeat his enemies just by analysing the situation he's in. This has helped him and his team fight against Grimm in which they had never fought before such as the Geist and Nuckelavee. While Ruby was the leader of team RNJR during their time traveling to mistral she did leave to planning to Jaune."**

"That actually answers one of my questions." Weiss spoke and explained as others looked at her. "Well I wondered who the leader of… RNJR was, no point having two leaders for such a small team."

"Yeah, since it was only Ruby and still the majority of JNPR I'd figured Jaune would be the leader." Yang couldn't help but wonder.

"Well after Beacon, Jaune thought it be best of he stepped down for a while and it was Ruby's idea to head to Mistral, we just followed her." Ren explained. Though true, Ruby was the leader of the group, Ren just couldn't help but think that she wouldn't never be _his_ leader, it wasn't distrust or lack of respect mind you, but Jaune knew Ren far more and was like the brother that neither had.

**Boomstick: "especially since he coordinated an attack against a rampaging deathstalker with a couple of strangers and came out alive during the Beacon initiation. As time went on Jaune actually became better and better in a short amount of time, thanks to his fighting heritage which allows him to learn moves and techniques faster than most people."**

"Is that really a thing?" Terra asked.

"It's not unheard of." Raven answered, the Branwen tribe had her family be a part of it for quite some time and they had to become fighters to survive and earn their place. Raven and Qrow were the same in that regard.

**Wiz: "and if you think faking transcripts was the worst thing he's done then you'd be wrong. After encountering an Atlas outpost they were denied access to Atlas."**

**Boomstick: "and so Jaune came up with a plan so crazy… it might just work."**

"What is it?" Harriet narrowed her eyes at this.

"_**Well, let's hear it." Ruby encourages Jaune.**_

"_**With Cordo on watch, only Atlas airships have the clearance to leave for Solitas. So, we… steal an Atlas airship?" Jaune suggests to the others.**_

…

…

…

Suddenly laughter broke the silence as Roman dropped from his chair and clutched his stomach as Neo silently laughed with him with Vernal joining in.

"Fu- haha. Fucki-hahah! FUCKING WHAT?! HAHAHAHAHA!" the stylish criminal was loving this. "Kid. If being a huntsman ever gets boring for you, feel free to call me or Neo up. Oh boy." He continued to chuckle at this.

Ironwood didn't find it so funny. "Steal Atlas property?!" He sent a glare at the Arc son who refused to look at what he'd consider an agent of death itself.

Ruby stepped in "Well, we haven't done that yet." Roman cut her off.

"YET! AHAHAHAH!" Ruby sent a quick glare at the ginger.

**Boomstick: "he planned to steal a military Bird! My respect for him just shot up."**

"Same." 3 guesses on who that was.

**Wiz: "and his plan would have succeeded if it wasn't for the interference by Adam Taurus who was after Blake."**

Ghira, Kali, Sun, Yang and Ilia shivered at the thought of such a confrontation between the two. Each levelling the bull headed young man a death glare that said 'stay away from her!' Adam hated the irony that he basically helped Atlas in a sense.

**Boomstick: "which then led to them fighting a goddamn Jaeger."**

Ironwood was getting a migraine at this point. He knew Cordo was rash and quick to show power against enemy forces but this was excessive, especially by using Atlas technology that was only designed to fight Grimm.

**Wiz: "He's improved so much that he can take on the likes of team FNKI who managed to be a match for team RWBY during the VYTAL festival."**

**Wiz: "while he did rely on his brains more than his brawns he has sought to balance this."**

**Boomstick: "and boy did he? When Oscar had joined team RNJR, Ozpin taught some basic hand to hand combat to the students, he's strong enough to carry fully grown people with just one arm and launch them into the air and even if that isn't impressive enough he managed to stop a charging Nuckelavee (which enjoys building smashing as a hobby) in its tracks and held the weight of it for 11 seconds straight. A Nuckelavee, which is basically a giant fucking horse! Hot damn!"**

**Wiz: "a regular horse weighs about 1524 kilograms and the Nuckelavee is around 2 times that size, not to mention the… thing on its back and the added weapons that's been stabbed into it. Stopping its charge in its track is impressive due to the facts that it's also twice as fast as a regular horse which can reach 88km/h or 55 mph. Double its size, that's 3048 kilograms in weight and in speed that's 109 mph!"**

"No wonder Nora called him 'Mr Muscles'." Yang laughed as Nora nodded proudly.

**Boomstick: "Holy shit! Though he is only the 3****rd**** strongest, behind the likes of Yang Xiao-Long and Nora Valkyrie, but with those two, ya gotta be happy even being compared to them. He's fast enough to dodge fast moving boulders and evaded a Nuckelavee arm that was headed straight for him. All that strength and speed but what about his durability?"**

**Wiz: "if not the strongest or fastest, Jaune does hold the title of most durable. He can take hits from the strongest of Grimm and fighters in remnant such as Yang and even Cinder fall. He even took a hit from a mech the size of a small mountain. All this is thanks to his aura. Which can increase a person's strength and speed."**

**Boomstick: "unlike others, Jaune had tons and tons of aura and can even do more thanks to his semblance."**

This made Jaune perk up. "My what?" others from Beacon also leaned in, the others of team JNPR being the most attentive. This is something they had been trying to help Jaune with the most and had been on edge whenever it felt like he was close to achieving it. Jaune was now grinning ear to ear in anticipation.

**SEMBLANCE **

**Wiz: "for most, discovering ones semblance is often a joyful moment and something to be proud of but for Jaune, he found is in the most horrifying moments of his life."**

The smile now dropped. "What does he mean?" Jaune shuddered at the possibilities.

"May be a shitty semblance." Mercury snorted.

"Oh shit!" Con' muttered then teleported in front of the Arc who was taken back by the action but he suddenly slumped in his seat, making the others fret over him.

"What did you do?" Yang stood up with red eyes as Pyrrha and Ruby tended to the unconscious blond.

"I believe that this is for the best with what's to come." Was all the god gave as he floated away.

_**It showed Cinder in all her over confident glory as a smile graced her half charred face, she lifted her undamaged arm and in a fiery flash of orange light, a spear of obsidian and embers appeared in her grasp.**_

_**Jaune was on the ground as he propped himself up and horrified realisation struck him. "No!"**_

"What is she doing?" Weiss felt a shiver shoot up her spine.

"That's not the question dear." Tyrian tittered.

"Then what is!?" Ruby demanded.

He smiled sinisterly before replying. "Who is she aiming at?"

_**Cinder walked forward slowly as the spear lay comfortably in her hand.**_

_**Jaune let out a cry. "NOOOO!" But it was useless. **_

_**Cinder smirked and let the weapon fly away.**_

_**Weiss was shown in a tired state, then her eyes widened in pain as she let out a gasp of agony, she looked down to see the dreadful weapon had pierced her body. Her side screaming in pain as she collapsed.**_

"NO!" Ruby clamped around Weiss as tears leaked from her eyes, her orbs flashing violently. Weiss could do nothing but hold her for dear life as she watched her counterpart- no. Her future self… die.

Yang and Blake joined the two, both not believing what they were witnessing.

Winter shot to her sister's side as Whitely stilled. His sister… killed? No it wasn't right, it wasn't real. He would wake up in a cold sweat any second now. Unfortunately no such thing happened. Willow screamed in despair, seeing her little girl be butchered like that, she may never get the chance to re connect with her, she never did connect with her dammit! Always being comforted by a glass full of wine and her own self-pity as her children grew up without a mother.

Jacques didn't know how to act, he had never had to deal with something like this and even with the knowledge of Weiss attending a combat school and looking into a career of killing monsters, he never registered that this could be a possibility, that he may one day be called from the luxury of his mansion to identify his daughters corpses. He simply shut down.

Adam smiled cruelly at the anguish the Schnee's were feeling, relishing the little victory for Faunus kind.

Ruby was about to use her semblance at Cinder but was held by her own mother as she struggled endlessly, Yang and Blake were about to join the fray if it wasn't for the efforts of their respective fathers stopping them, but even with their greater strengths, it was like holding back a starving tiger from a steak.

"Let go of me, dad!" Yang's eyes now shone crimson as her hair exploded in a fiery mess. Her semblance acting up to fight off her father.

Winter wanted nothing more than to skewer her sister's murderer but knew Weiss needed her more.

"CALM DOWN! NOW!" Con's bellowed, his own power magnifying his voice like a shockwave.

"We're just meant to let to go!?" Yang shouted as she faced her crimson orbs at the entity now who was unaffected.

"You need to calm down and watch what happens next." Con' ordered.

Ren remember what Wiz was saying. "He's right." His friends turned to him, feeling like Ren was betraying them. "Jaune's semblance is about to be shown, for all we know, this could save Weiss!" he justified his calmness.

This seemed to help quell the fire in the Red, Blake and Yellow members of RWBY but it still burned bright as each levelled a death glare at Cinder.

It seemed like Jaune being knocked out was a good thing, one could only imagine how he'd react.

_**Jaune was seen tending to the downed Schnee as he put pressure against the wound as Ren held her hand, checking her pulse as it grew weaker and weaker. "She's hardly breathing. i… I don't know what we can do." He could only look down at Weiss' pain filled face as every take of breath seemed to hurt her more.**_

_**Jaune shook his head in denial. "No! It wasn't supposed to be like this!" he sobbed as he begged Weiss "Please! We can't lose anyone else." It seemed like all hope was lost for Weiss and the fight, but in moments of darkness, when all hope is gone and will is drained, a light shall always break through that darkness. That light seemed to come from Jaune's hands.**_

_**Pure white Aura seemed to dance across Weiss' body, like a pool of water began to fill up within her, she let out a gasp as she finally started breathing once more…**_

"_**You guys doing okay?" it time skipped to Nora standing guard of the two as Jaune continued to heal Weiss.**_

"_**I think so." Jaune reported as Weiss began to stabilise "She's coming to, I just wish this would go faster."**_

"_**How about you don't complain and just be thankful you unlocked your semblance when you did…"**_

"_**I don't think im healing her, our aura heals our bodies. It feels more like im using my aura to amplify hers."**_

_**And with that Weiss' eyes opened**_

The theatre was still as they witnessed a miracle, well depending on who you asked.

Jaune's eyes then fluttered open, as if he had just woken up. Was he asleep? How the hell did he? Wasn't he just about to witness his semblance? How could he fall asleep at a time like that?!

He gave a groan and looked to his friends, "What happened?" he grew confused and concerned when they gave him looks of shock and happiness. Wait. Were RWBY crying?

"What?" he asked.

He felt an impact at his side that sent him to the ground and saw Ruby had lunged at him and was hugging him in a vice like grip, who was tearing up as she thanked him.

"sniff- Jaune! You.. you.." She couldn't even talk right as she merely went back to hugging him, both were pulled to their feet by Yang who wrapped her own arms around Jaune with Blake joining it, the three girls smiling and lightly crying in relief and happiness, knowing their sister would be safe and it was thanks to Jaune.

"What is going on? I like a hug from a group of beautiful girls like any other guy but this is just weird."

"Just shut up and take the hug vo-Jaune." Yang sniffled lightly.

"Jaune." A quiet voice broke the four apart as they looked to see Weiss looking a mixture of emotions. Fear, relief, joy, gratitude, pain and unsureness before she herself hugged her future saviour, her own tear staining his armour like the others.

"Weiss!" said singer turned only to be clomped by her mother, flinching at the unusual display of love from her. The mother then turned her teary eyes to Jaune as she held her daughter "Thank you! Thank you, thank you!" she cried out as she dropped to her knees, Weiss still in her embrace.

"Okay! Can somebody just tell me what happened?!" Jaune asked, this was too much.

"It was your semblance, after Weiss had taken a fatal blow you had saved her life with your semblance." Con' filled in, his voice much more calm than before.

…"WHAT?!" he cried out.

After a few minutes of explanations, crying and mini celebrating (and muted snarls of rage from a certain Faunus), everyone returned to their seat, only difference being Willow and Winter sitting with Weiss, with Weiss still being hugged by her mother, who refused to let her go, fearing she'd be taken away.

There was a reason Con' had made Jaune fall asleep during that scene.

**Wiz: "Aura Amplification. This allows Jaune to push his aura past its limits, with that he can become stronger, faster, heal more sever wounds, his own and others and even sense others around him."**

*****_**Clip of Jaune amplifying Ren and healing a huntsman's broken arm* **_

**Boomstick: "Think of it like Goku's kaioken, yeah it's like that with none of the risks of dying and destroying his body."**

"It's like Yang's semblance." Ruby voiced her thoughts.

"Or Nora's." Pyrrha doing the same.

"Yeah, just needing his own Aura for that." Came the hammer wielder.

"And without the damage." Came the brawler.

**Wiz: "he can amplify others aura as well, as seen where he healed Weiss' fatal wound and even filled her with enough aura it was like she had just started fighting."**

**Boomstick: "yeah he filled her up alright, Heh Heh."**

This got many chuckles from the sex joke, even from the pristine Schnee herself, forgetting all taught way of acting just to laugh.

**Wiz: "innuendoes aside, he has also increase the semblances of others, such as Lie Ren, who can mask himself and others from Grimm but only works on two or three people at a time, with Jaunes aura amplification they managed to mask an entire trains worth or people from a large pack of Grimm."**

As Jaune's semblance was explained, the interests of many were peaked. Something like that was rare and valuable in a hunters work.

Ozpin and Salem began to plan on how to utilise this.

For Ozpin, it meant giving her students a power up of some sort, thus making up for lack of numbers.

Salem was planning on how to sway Jaune onto her side or to simply take him or his semblance for her minions.

Any other time, Cinder would have been scheming how to get Jaune on her side, but after everything, she didn't know what to think.

**Boomstick: "Damn! Which means he could make Ruby faster, help Weiss make more glyphs and summoning's, make Yang stronger. Hell he could make Nora like Thor, the God damn god of thunder! Ya know I didn't think much about this guy but now he could kick some ass."**

**FLAWS**

**-no training prior to Beacon.**

**-inferiority complex.**

**-Can lose control of his emotions.**

**-hates to lose.**

**Wiz: "while Jaune has improved, he is not flawless. Since he didn't receive any real training before Beacon he can lose control and rush into battle, like the battle of Haven when he rushed at Cinder, a clearly superior fighter, with no real plan or strategy after she managed to get under his skin."**

***clip of Jaune charging at cinder***

**Boomstick: "after beacon, Jaune kinda went on the deep end, becoming cynical and paranoid and even considers his friends live more important than his own. He has a real lack of self-confidence and even an inferiority complex."**

***Jaune under Cinder's foot* **_**"If I die buying them time, then it's worth it. They're the ones that matter"**_

NPR wanted to comment on that but stayed silent, knowing that it would force Jaune into a defensive state, best to sort it out without a couple of strangers listening in and it would dampen the mood from earlier.

**Wiz: "despite all this Jaune truly has earned the right to be called a Huntsman and is willing to risk life and limb for his friends and loved ones."**

"_**Don't ever mess with me- my friends- ever again. Got it?"**_

"So now we know more about the kid." Clover spoke.

"Now it's this guy's turn." Qrow downed a gulp from his flask.

**TRANSISTION TO AGENT WASHINGTON**

**Wiz: "project Freelancer. A secret, co-vert ops group that housed the most highly trained soldiers, fitted with experimental armour and weaponry. Only the best could be a part of this group."**

"Okay that alone shows Mr Agent is gonna win." Mercury said, already deciding a winner.

Cinder just scoffed. "What have I told you about assuming a victory without knowing your opponent and how they function?"

"But it's Arc. We've seen what he was like in Beacon." Emerald nearly puked at the thought of agreeing with Mercury.

"This is after Beacon." Emerald blushed at the deadpan look Cinder gave her.

**Boomstick: "though agent Washington wasn't exactly the best of the best."**

**BACKGROUND**

**-Codename: Washington.**

**-Real name: David**

**-Freelancer: ranked 6****th**

**-Corporal before being an agent.**

**-Injured his Staff sergeant.**

**-One of the few surviving freelancers.**

"I would praise him for his rise in rank but attacking his staff sergeant?" Ironwood scowled at the notion.

"Certainly nothing a respectable soldier would do." Winter nodded.

"Should probably hear why before you start calling him an asshole." Qrow hated the believe that high rank officials or soldiers were always innocent when it came to conflict of ideals; reason why he never liked the way ironwood ran things and would probably have decked the first drill sergeant that screamed in his face.

"One of the few survivors? Means either he's a coward or a fighter." Raven despised cowards, but she doesn't always think highly of survivors, for they can and will give up their own comrades for their own survival.

**Wiz: "Washington may not have been the best but he wasn't the worst, usually ranking between 5****th**** or 6****th**** place on the freelancer board but he has been considered a rookie among his peers."**

**Boomstick: "like the time he threw a grenade without removing its pin and he has been called the worst fighter during his freelancer agent days. He was the worst but climbed his way to the top and became a regular for a lot of freelancer missions."**

"Definitely a fighter." Vernal said.

Adam would rather rip off his own horns before he gave any credit to a human so he wouldn't say he respected this agent but he knew the feeling of being once a lowly soldier and to rise to the top, even if it meant killing a few people.

**Wiz: "despite this, he was an easy going and friendly soldier, never letting the board dictate how he felt or acted towards his fellow agents."**

"Whoever thought the idea of a rank system for these freelancers was may not have thought it completely through, that can only cause infighting and soldiers trying to show up one another." Penny had no idea how accurate she was.

Salem knew better however, whoever done the rank board was smart. Having such a thing proves a person's worth and skills to others and can be used to show that person was the best, better than his or her peers. The soldiers would constantly do their best in order to be acknowledged as the best.

Even if it meant doing _anything_.

She had seen it even in her own circle.

**Boomstick: "we say was because after undergoing a failed A.I. implant to the old knoggin' he became kinda darker and cold towards others, even killing one of his fellow agents when the project had failed."**

**Wiz: "But after spending time with the reds and blues he became himself once more but still has his eyes open to the darker side of the UNSC."**

"Okay is this guy just Jaune but from an alternate reality?" Sun asked.

"They are kinda similar." Neptune adopted a thinking pose.

"**It is implied that Wash took over the role of the leader of Blue Team, and he eventually comes to care very greatly for the Reds and Blues, showing fierce loyalty towards them and seeing them as a new family and place to belong, even more so than he did with his previous platoon and the freelancers. Even threatening Carolina who had threatened one of the members of blue team."**

**Boomstick: "and he helped train the simulation soldiers into somewhat competent soldiers and even took some inspiration from them as some of his plans and tactics somewhat reflect on them, like the time he used his helmet to locate a sniper. He even became better at fighting, being able to fight foes like agent Texas and mercenaries like locus and Felix."**

**ARSENAL**

**M66 Magnum pistol**

**Magazine: 8 rounds**

**Range: 152ft/50m**

**BR85 battle rifle**

**3 round burst fire**

**Magazine: 36 rounds**

**Range: 3117ft/950m**

**Throwing knives.**

**Combat knife**

**M9 frag Grenade**

**Kill radius 16ft**

**Mark VI armour**

Ruby had stars in her eyes as she saw the layouts of the weapons and the facts about them.

**Boomstick: "Hell yeah, I love me some guns, Agent Washington's main choice for a fire arm is the BR85 battle rifle that's good for long range shooting with a 3 shot burst. Along with one of my favourite pistols, the m66 magnum that can pierce most armour similar to his own with only three shots."**

**Wiz: "wash has shown a skill for knives, ranging from close quarters combat to throwing knives."**

**Boomstick: "and at least he's learnt to remove the fricking pin before he tosses a grenade."**

**Wiz: "and being a member of the freelancer ops he was given experimental suit enhancements, an Electromagnet Pulse ammeter that he can use. While an A.I. was needed for this, such enhancements were later improved to work without one."**

"So far we haven't heard anything about his semblance or Aura." Ren mused.

"Oh this person possess no such things." Con' informed them.

"Wait, how's he meant to fight Jaune? Without Aura, Jaune has a huge advantage." Ruby asked but was only pointed towards the screen.

**ABILITIES**

**Wiz: like most soldiers, Wash was given serum that increases his strengths and speed.**

**-stronger skeleton.**

**-Muscle increase**

**-Boosted tissue growth**

**-enhanced speed**

**-Enhanced strength**

"Oh." Was the meek reply.

**Boomstick: "while he wasn't tossing around cars like agent Maine, he wasn't a wimp either. With being a super soldier he was faster and stronger and could think quicker along with being smart on and off the battle field."**

**FEATS**

**-Improved in CQC**

**-Led the chorus army**

**-Accurate enough to tag Texas and a cockpit in a hornet during free fall**

**-Held his own against the Meta single-handedly.**

**-Smart enough to unravel the plans of a time manipulating entity**

**-Survived numerous situations that most would not.**

***ran over by a warthog.**

***survived being shot in the back**

***Survived being blown up by multiple explosive barrels**

***Took a hit from a railgun round.**

***was dehydrated and starved and later shot in the neck**

**Wiz: "Wash is one of the most patient agents, having harboured rebellious thoughts against the project and the director of the group for many years before turning on them, along with keeping his focus and cool during many setbacks on and off missions and does have a high pain threshold."**

**Boomstick: "while he was the worst in fighting back in the day, he improved enough to go head to head with the likes of agent Texas, the Meta and Locus and Felix."**

"Im guessing they're no easy fish." Taiyang guessed.

**Wiz: "he has encountered situations that would normally kill a person and survived."**

**Boomstick: "like the time he was ran over by a warthog, climbed on top of it while it was moving, got rammed into a few explosive barrels, was in the middle of the explosion! And was up just a few minutes later. He even tanked getting shot by a grenade launcher, the brute shot to be specific."**

_***Clip of wash ordering sarge and then getting run over***_

"_**What? Wait, what are you up to? What is that noise? Do I hear a…" Suddenly, an armoured vehicle rammed through a concrete wall and towards the still but shocked agent who only had enough time to cry out "CAR?!" before he was ran over, the wall from before doing next to nothing against the vehicle or its speed.**_

"_**How's my bumper taste asshole?" Griff mocked then yelped in fear as an arm suddenly shot up in front of the vehicle. **_

_**It was Wash, he let out a near animalistic growl as he climbed the hood of the car and aimed his rifle at the driver.**_

_**Later he was sent flying into a collection of explosive barrels which was shot by Sarge as he drove by with Griff and his trusty shotgun.**_

**Wiz: "a Warthog is a military vehicle used in the war against aliens and is a favourite amongst the UNSC military. This armoured car can reach up to speeds of 125km/h or 78mph and said warthog even rammed through a 30 inch thick concrete wall."**

"Penny."

"Yes sir." Penny was already saving an image of said vehicle for later study.

**Boomstick: "he took that to the friggin' chest and kept on going! That serum and armour can defiantly help him take a beating"**

**Wiz: "He's traded blows with power houses like Agent Texas and the Meta but did have the Meta's help against Texas. He's gone up against two veteran UNSC soldiers along with Agent Carolina and won."**

**Boomstick: "he even dodged 3 throwing knives and caught the fourth one at close range and dodged sword strikes from Felix."**

**Wiz: "he has shown to be smart and tactical in many situations, like the time he used the snowy environment to locate and throw his knife at an invisible Meta and cut his own hand to use the blood to locate Locus when he used his cloaking device. And found out the plans of a cosmic being and utilised a plan to foil her own."**

**Wiz: "He's accurate enough to shoot guns out of others hands and shot Texas who has dodged gunfire before though it was just a flesh wound."**

**Boomstick: "his biggest test for survival was the time he was locked in his armour and was without food or water for days before being rescued but was seriously delusional afterwards and later wandered onto a battle field only to get shot in the throat, but don't worry, he lived… with some, little, um… brain damage. But still survived. So ya!"**

"Damn!" Sun had no other input.

**Wiz: "that's… not something to cheer about Boomstick. That's still kinda grim."**

**Boomstick: "I said he lived didn't I?"**

**Wiz: "let's just move on"**

**FLAWS**

**-Outsmarted by Sarge.**

**-Shown to not be mentally stable.**

**-Lost in a fight against Locus**

**-Underestimates a lot of his opponents and even allies.**

**Wiz: "Despite project freelancer taking only the best soldiers, each had their own sets of flaws and Washington was no exception."**

**Boomstick: "He's underestimated his foes a number of times, like how he didn't think much about the reds and blues before they had additional training and were still a group of dumbasses and they still got the best of him. Another time was when he didn't take into account how the Meta would react when he had an A.I. in hand and didn't stop him. Also despite surviving an explosion that was made by a space ship colliding with an alien skyscraper, he assumed that Locus and Felix died in said explosion who are basically the same as wash in terms of strength and durability."**

_***clip of Wash talking to the reds.**_

"_**I just want you all to know how much I appreciate you. That's it." Wash explains.**_

"_**YOU THINK WE'RE GONNA FUCKING DIE!" Griff accuses.**_

"_**No I don't!" Wash denies quickly. Too quickly.**_

"_**No you do, you defiantly do! You're getting all sentimental and shit!"**_

"_**Nooo, guys. Come on! You'll be fine, I have total faith in you. You're some of the best soldiers I ever knew." Wash assured them.**_

"_**WHAT THE FUCK IS THAT PAST TENSE BULLSHIT!?" Simmons demands. **_

That drew a few laughs at the comedic tone to it.

"_**I would say that was the cavalry, but I've never seen a line of horses crash into the battlefield from outer space before."**_

"**He's also missed targets who are of similar speed to his own."**

_***Clip of Felix dodging gunfire from a few feet away.**_

**Wiz: "while the armour is impressive, it is not bullet proof, it can be penetrated by knives and gunfire and he has been shot in the throat before."**

**Boomstick: "and with the betrayals, failed A.I. surgery and finding out the crimes project freelancer and in turn himself committed, surviving a war and neck injury and also witnessing a re-enactment of his own neck injury has led to some serious PTSD along with paranoia."**

**Wiz: "for all his flaws he has become one of the best fighters and a formidable opponent that could defeat many adversaries."**

**Boomstick: "this is one agent you don't wanna mess with. Even if he is a little crazy"**

"_**I'm not crazy OK. Im totally completely sane. Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to blow up this dead body." Washington.**_

**TRANSITION**

**Wiz: "all right, the combatants are set. Let's end this debate once and for all."**

**Boomstick: "IT'S TIME FOR A DEATH BATTLEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!"**

"Pause." Con' followed Roman's wish.

"So… bets anyone?" he rubbed his hands together in anticipation.

"Seriously?" Ruby asked.

"Don't want in red? No problem, keep your allowance if you want, just know you can add to it."

"You really think money is enough to sway Ruby even if she is a dolt at times?" Roman chuckled and nodded towards Ruby, making Weiss turn to her quiet leader.

'Think of all the cookies you can get.'

"Ruby!" she was jarred out of her thoughts by her partner.

"You're right Weiss!"

"Thank you."

"30 Lien on Jaune!" the ex-heiress could only shake her head and mutter dolt.

Teams RWBY and NPR along with Sun, Neptune and Velvet and Oscar betted on Jaune to win the fight. Coco betting on Wash instead, saying he had more experience on his side.

Those that threw in some money from Atlas; I.E. Marrow, Elm and Harriet put their money on the agent also. Those not betting: Ironwood, Clover, Vine and Winter had more faith in the military training than Arc so they believed the agent could win. Penny calculating the odds of success but not giving any answer.

Tai and Qrow thought Jaune could win, Tai mostly because Jaune was his daughters' friend.

Vernal believed that survivors would always come out on top, and the freelancer was a survivor.

Adam hoped both would kill each other. Is that really a surprise?

Emerald put her money on Wash while Mercury betted on Jaune, just to spite the green thief.

**The Kingdom of Atlas hung over head as Jaune Arc ventured out, looking for the Neapolitan shaded woman that stole the Relic of Knowledge. He cursed himself for being so easily fooled by the woman's illusion that he should've seen it coming. Now because of it she got away with the Relic and handed it off to Cinder.**

"**Shit, I need to find her!" he bolted down the road, he looked back up to Atlas he hoped his friends were okay and managed to convince Ironwood not to lose his cool. "But right now, I need to find that woman," he said as he ran down the road.**

**Further down the road was a man in grey and yellow marked armour. A BR55HB battle rifle strapped to his back with a Magnum side arm on his left leg. A holographic wanted poster appeared as it showed the faces of Team RWBY and JNPR now wanted by the Atlas Kingdom.**

"**Seriously? It's just a bunch of kids. Why's a Kingdom putting a bounty on a bunch of kids? Ah, who cares?" Agent Washington said as he shook his head. "Oh well, until find the guys, might as well bring these kids in. After all, how bad could they be?"**

**He failed to notice the blond speeding towards him as he spotted Neo from a distance. "Hey! Get back here!" Jaune yelled as he chased after her. "Oh sorry!" he called out as he bumped into Wash.**

"**Oh, no problem…" he paused as he snapped his head back around. "Hey wait a minute!" Jaune didn't hear him as he continued after her. "I said hold it!" Wash pulled out his rifle as he shot three rounds at Jaune's feet causing him to halt.**

"**I said freeze!" Wash ordered as Jaune turned back to him. "You're the kid on the wanted poster, Jaune Arc, right?" he asked as he pointed to the Holo-poster. "Kingdom of Atlas just put a huge bounty on you and your friends. I don't know what you did, but I'm here to take you in. So, stand down, and I promise I won't hurt you."**

**Jaune glared as he drew his sword. "I don't want to do this, so let me pass." He unfurled his shield as the man only sighed.**

"**Can't say I didn't warn you." Wash said as he aimed his battle rifle at the teen. Their eyes focused on each other as they waited for the first move…**

"**FIGHT!"**

"Here we go!"

"C'mon kid!"

"C'mon you deranged soldier! I got money riding on ya!"

**Wash shot first as the three burst rounds shot from the barrel. Jaune quick to bring up his shield as they impacted and bounced off his aura enhanced shield. Jaune held fast as he rushed towards the man, fully intending to close the gap between them and force him into close quarters.**

"This would be a good idea but wash still has knives and knows how to fight up close." Blake commented.

**Wash noticed this as he stopped firing and sheathed his gun to his back. Meeting the boy halfway as Jaune swiped his sword, only to miss as the man counted with a punch to the face. Wash ignored how his fist flared up for a second as he kept up the assault.**

**Jaune stumbled back as he brought back up his guard and held his shield up. Wash was already close in as he expertly sent fist and kick at the young man. If it hadn't been for the extra training at Atlas, and the one on one sessions with Yang, Jaune would've been a goner.**

"Yeah, if I were still at Beacon this fight would be over in seconds." Jaune spoke.

**The Arc focused his Aura to his exposed legs, which was a good idea as a kick met his knee, he grit his teeth as he still felt the blow but was thankful that strike didn't break his bones.**

**Jaune quickly forced the man back as he pushed the Freelancer back, who rolled on the ground before getting back with his rifle. He shot several rounds at Jaune, who activated the hard-light dust and stopped the bullets.**

**Wash pulled out one of his fragment grenades as he threw one behind the boy, who noticed just in time to turn and block the blast that threw him off his feet. Wash immediately rushed the boy as he placed a foot on his shield. "Not so fast!" Wash said as he aimed his gun at Jaune was about to raise his sword when Wash fired near his head.**

"**I wouldn't do that if I were you." Wash warned as he re-aimed the rifle at his head. "Now how about you…wait, what's the sound?" he looked down to Jaune's Shield as the Arc Symbol glowed purple.**

"…**Oh you've got to be-!" he was thrown high into the air as the Gravity dust launched him high. "SHIT!" he yelled before falling back down.**

"I've got to get that for Crocea Mors." Jaune decided.

"Thankfully you will in the future." Ren reminded him.

"Gravity dust is a useful tool to have in a fight against any opponent." Weiss advised, using her knowledge on the strange resource.

**Jaune quickly got back up as he sheathed his sword to his sheath and then re-drew the whole sword and sheath. But he flipped a switch that locked the sheath to the blade and turned the regular sword into two-hander. He rushed as the man just got back up, his now heavier sword striking against the energy shield. Wash jumped back as he dodged and avoided the larger sword being swung at his face.**

"**Whoa! Hey! Watch it!" he yelled as he avoided the blade. "Oh, that's it, come here!" he closed the distance as he managed to grab the boy by his armour and threw him away. He then spotted his rifle as he drew his magnum and fired several shots, they impacted against Jaune's Aura. He sheathed the pistol as he ran and grabbed the rifle off the ground and fired it at Jaune.**

**Jaune quickly took cover as he hid behind a riot block. He looked back as he just managed to duck his head back at the rounds hitting the concrete. Jaune deactivated the two-handler mode as he sighed and quickly assessed the situation.**

'Let's see what you're capable of Mr. Arc.' Ironwood and Ozpin shared the same thoughts.

'_**Okay, he has some kind of 'energy shield', tough armour and enhanced strengths.' **_**Jaune surmised as he watched the man reload and take cover. **_**'He's taking cover. Either he's running low, or he's thinking of something.**_**' He slumped back to the cover as he looked around. The street they were in had a few abandoned cars, he looked at the closest vehicle then at his shield and back to the car.**

"Ooh I think I'm gonna like this idea." Yang rubbed her palms together.

"Go unleash hell Fearless Leader!" Nora cried out.

**Wash on the other hand was checking his magazine before reloading. His HUD showed himself and the Arc, but he was starting to move again. **_**'Strange that the kid doesn't have a gun…but then again, Tucker has that sword, so who am I to judge? Anyway that means he isn't a threat at long range, maybe I can pick him off with a few shots. Then again he's armoured and holding a shield.**_**' he then heard a sound as he became confused.**

**It sounded like something flying in the air, like something of great mass and weight was hurled into the sky, something Maine done every now and then.**

"**What is that? Did he throw a-!" Wash looked to the dark clouds of the night with wide eyes… "CAR!" he then lunged to the side to avoid becoming pancaked by the car as it hit the ground.**

"Son of a bitch. He's literally throwing cars at my guy." Roman spoke out.

"Cars. His one weakness." Mercury snorted.

**He rolled onto his back but then, a second car landed straight onto his shoulder. "MOTHER FUCKER!" he yelled out, the car drooped onto its wheels, thankfully not onto him. He examined his now free limb. Thankfully it wasn't broken and the armour took most the impact but still felt hurt like a little bitch. He growled in anger and slight pain but this wouldn't take him out of the fight yet. **

"Tough bastard." Vernal was still confident in her bet.

"We should see if we can recreate that armour for our troops." Winter suggested.

"Good idea Specialist Schnee." Ironwood praised.

**Back with Jaune, he moved to a third car and crouched by the rear of it, he then grabbed the underside of it and proceeded to lift up the rear. 'Nora was right, Mr. Muscles.' He mused, he then placed his shield facing the underside of it. The symbol on his shield glowed purple and then it sent out a powerful repulse which sent the car hurtling like the other two.**

"He's utilised the dust quite efficiently. Using it for both defence and offense." Hazel pointed out.

'**He can't aim when he's too busy dodging flying cars.' Jaune figured.**

"But at the same time you leave yourself exposed while you go through the process of lifting and repelling the vehicles." Glynda pointed out the flaws.

"Along with using more strength to lift said vehicle." Ghira followed along.

**Wash yelped again as he rolled out the path of another descending car. "What the hell?!" he yelled out. He saw Jaune, who had gotten closer to the Freelancer's location, setting up another vehicle for a trip.**

"**Oh no you don't!" he then fired a barrage of bullets at Jaune to stop him.**

**When Jaune took his eyes off Wash, the agent hid out of sight behind a different abandoned vehicle. **_**'Seriously!? He's throwing cars at me?! Wait… no he's not, it that shield. Maybe if I can disable it, it'll even the playing field. Just need to flush him out.'**_

**Wash dropped to the ground and looked from under the car. Checking for another set of feet. He saw Jaune's feet behind a car, not too far away. Getting up to a crouch once more, Wash cooked up an idea. He pulled out a grenade and lightly tossed the smooth sphere of destruction.**

'_**Let's see if I'm any good a bowling.'**_

**Jaune checked his aura meter and was relieved at its current status. '**_**85%. Not too bad, that guy can pack a punch, his bullets are a bitch too. Thank Gods for my semblance. Now to-.'**_** Jaune stopped himself as he saw a small ball role at his feet. His eyes widened as he recognized what that ball was. (His roommate and teammate is Nora people, he knows what it is).**

"**SHIT!" Jaune cursed and jumped up. His shield facing forward and Aura flaring up, the explosion that followed sent him back flying into a parked van.**

"Jaune." Pyrrha spoke in a worried voice along with Ren and Nora.

**Jaune groaned in pain as his vision blurred slightly, he saw an incoming grey blur, when his eyesight returned to normal he quickly shielded himself once more when Wash's palm slammed onto its face, unbeknownst to him, the agent was hoping for this.**

**Wash quickly activated his armour enhancement, the electromagnetic pulse activated and worked its magic against the upgraded shield. Electricity danced around his hand and the protective instrument.**

**Jaune kicked his opponent back and got out from the large body sized dent he made on the van and dashed at Wash. The ex-Freelancer in return pulled out his pistol and shot at Jaune's sword wielding hand, shooting the blade from the huntsman's grip.**

**Jaune continued though, he still had his shield with him.**

**Wash sent a powerful punch at the Arc who intercepted it with his trusty shield, the fist bashed against the metal and let out a loud DONG! Similar to that of church bells ringing.**

**Jaune felt the force travel through the shield and to his arms, he grit his teeth as he felt them vibrate from the blow, he tried to use the gravity dust to push the punk back but it didn't work. Why? Wait, the guy must have done something to it when he touched it just seconds ago.**

"He's disabled the electrical components that actually activate the dust, Arc has less tricks up his sleeve now." Watts should've put some money in the pot himself now that he thinks about it, the soldier was obviously going to win.

**Jaune was cut from his musing as the shield was pushed out of the way and felt a Spartan kick to his chest, sending him to the hard ground.**

**Wash aimed his rifle at the prone teen and let out a burst fire, but the kid blocked with his shield again! He needed to get that out from his hands.**

**Jaune rolled to his feet and circled his enemy. Shield covering his face and upper body.**

**Wash pulled out his side arm and emptied the clip, the bullets only bouncing off the hard metal of Crocea Mors. When the click of an empty mag sounded off, Jaune sent a right hook to Wash, making contact with the helmet, he would have left a bruise on his cheek if his face were exposed.**

**Jaune let forward another punch, this time with the edge of his shield but Wash stopped it in its path. He struck Jaune's open side and face after. The agent latched onto the edges of the shield and twisted it. Since it was strapped to Jaune, the blond was flipped as well. **

**Thankfully he landed on his feet but didn't feel the familiar weight of Crocea Mors on his arm. Jaune snarled as his beloved weapon was stolen from him, now this was personal.**

"Son of a bitch just took my shield." Jaune narrowed his eyes at the freelancer in the portal.

**He tried to punch Wash in the gut but got bashed in the arm by his own shield and received his own gut punch.**

**Jaune coughed roughly as he rolled back then made a charge at Washington, who threw the shield at Jaune, aiming for his neck. Jaune dodged the incoming metal which was impaled on the side of a truck. **

**Hand to hand then? Okay, Wash could work with that, he then pulled out his combat knife and made several slashes at the blond who focused on defence and dodging.**

**Wash then managed to slash at Jaune's cheek, leaving a shallow but long cut. Jaune twisted his body to try and avoid the blade and used that momentum to deliver an elbow to Wash's head, he then tackled the agent, body slamming him into a parked car.**

"I don't know why people do that, sure you tackled the guy but know he has free access to your kidneys, back, head and can hold you in place or even choke you after." Harriet shook her head.

**Wash grabbed the hunter and turned the pair around so that Jaune was against the car. Wash then tried to bring down his knife on Jaune who grabbed Wash's wrist to stop it. The two struggled but wash head butted Jaune, dazing him and then buried the knife in the blonde's shoulder.**

"**ARGHH!" Jaune cried out in pain and focused his aura into his arms, gaining the extra strength to shove the grey soldier away. Jaune then pulled out the knife and used more Aura to heal both hi cheek and shoulder.**

**He figured his Aura meter was around 50%. He received too many hits after all. **

**Jaune looked around for his weapons and found the shield and sword. He quickly gathered both parts to Crocea Mors while Wash reloaded his guns.**

**Jaune, now with his weapons in hand, sheathed the blade into the shield to change into its two-handed form.**

**He once again charged at Wash with a battle cry, large sword at the ready.**

**Washington aimed his rifle at the fast approaching target and let out a stream of bullets.**

**Jaune however, changed the shape of the large blade back to its shield form, sword still in its sheathe. The bullets bounced off harmlessly and Jaune quickly changed the shield to blade once more.**

**Wash ducked out the way of the extended sword and shot at the Arc once more. Jaune repeated his previous actions, changing it to a shield then sword once the gun fire stopped.**

"He's changing his weapon in quick succession and during unusual circumstances to throw off his opponent. Trying to get in close and land a solid blow." Tai theorised as he continued watching.

**Jaune then slashed at Wash's armour, slicing the chest piece nearly in half and piercing the skin underneath.**

"I got him! I got him!" Jaune cheered.

"Great kid, don't get cocky." Qrow warned him at the end.

**Fortunately for Wash, the armour was the only thing to suffer a large cut, a shallow one decorated his chest, blood lightly dripping from the crimson wound. Wash grit his teeth in annoyance, that little tactic of the kid's worked.**

**Jaune, saw the wound that had yet to heal. **_**'Wait, does this guy not have Aura?**_**' Jaune realized that he had an advantage so he pushed on.**

"Now that Jaune realises this, he's more likely to push and be more aggressive." Pyrrha said.

"Still got to be careful though." Jaune took Qrow's advice. He may have injured the agent but he was far from beaten.

**Wash knew he had to separate the kid from his weapon and fingered his sticky grenade, he knew how he'd do it.**

**His brain storming was cut off as he saw the large sword heading straight for him! He instinctively put his rifle in the path of the sword but it was cut in two like butter. **

"Now that the gun is destroyed, he'll have no choice but to stay in close range." Weiss herself could easily deal with enemies at long range with her speed and glyphs but Jaune didn't have that advantage. It was a good thing RWBY dealt with the Nevermore instead of JNPR who didn't possess as many long rang weapons.

**The agent however, managed to avoid the falling blade and stuck a sticky grenade to its side once it hit the ground.**

**Jaune saw the object and knew what this guy's plan was. Jaune hurriedly unlocked the shield from the blade of his sword and tossed it away from him, he then rolled away from it for good measure, the explosion that followed nearly pushed him further but once he came to a stop in a crouch, he looked up to see Wash in front of him!**

**Jaune attempted a swipe with his now normal sword but the weapon was kicked from his hand while a second kick struck his cheek.**

**Jaune tumbled to the floor but shot back to his feet in a combat stance.**

**Wash chuckled as he put his own hands up in a similar stance. "If that's what you want kid." He then threw a lightning fast punch.**

**Jaune however didn't react. It was like time was moving at a crawl for him, he closed his eyes and took a deep breath and began to focus on using his semblance.**

**His Aura began to amplify as his body started to glow a bright white all over.**

**Wash was nearly blinded by this but let his fist fly and land right into Jaune's face.**

**The connection of armour on skin was heard and Wash opened his eyes to see what happened.**

**He was shocked to find that he did land the blow, right in the kids face and pushing it back but Jaune turned his head to stare at Wash in the eye.**

"Bad ass!" Sun cheered.

"A classic, nice." Neptune agreed.

**Wash back pedalled at that, what the hell? He thought he put all his strength into that yet the kid didn't seem all that affected by it, he let out another strike and the same thing happened.**

**Wash then picked up the speed of his attacks, going for body shots as well as aiming for the face still, punch after punch after punch but nothing, the kid was taking it all in stride.**

**Unbeknownst to him, Jaune had increased his aura and became a human shield, taking the blows and letting his Aura protect him, he was hoping to tire out his opponent before making his own advance. And it seemed to be working.**

**Wash started to feel his lungs work overtime as he wasted more energy by punching Jaune repeatedly. He started to feel something with his hands as well.**

**At first he ignored it but the pain he felt from his knuckles were now screaming at him, he even felt the familiar warmth of blood covering them. He was hurting himself more than this punk!**

"Oh yeah. Since Washington doesn't have Aura, he can't pass Jaune's aura with only his hands." Ruby said.

Jaune was reminded of the time during the Forever Fall trip where Cardin hurt his own hand after trying to punch Jaune.

**He needed to do something, throw off his concentration and make a move, it needed to be a finishing blow. Wash saw where the discarded sword was and a plan formed in his head once again.**

**Wash pulled out his pistol and unloaded what little ammo he had, this worked better than his bare hands against Jaune's aura. Jaune backhanded the pistol from Wash's grip, making it land a few yards away from them. **

"That'll eat up some Aura." Illa said.

**"Okay kid let's play dirty!" Wash said as he slashed the palm of his hand with his knife and threw blood at Jaune's eye, blinding him. Jaune's had to close his eyes at this, as he was blinded, if it wasn't for that, his vision would be painted crimson.**

"EW!"

"Gross!"

"Nasty."

**"Fuck! Ah, that's just wrong!" He yelled as he tried to wipe the blood from his eyes.**

**He then felt something slam onto his chest. What he didn't know was that it was another sticky grenade.**

**The explosion took a large chunk of aura from the Arc and sent him flying into a brick wall. His back took the full brunt of the impact while his chest still burned. His nerves going haywire with pain.**

"Oooh! Damn that must have hurt." Mercury winced.

"C'mon Jaune! Keep fighting!" Pyrrha urged.

"No, screw that. Lose kid. I ain't losing any money to red or anybody!" Roman "Helpfully" ranted.

**Jaune couched violently as he finally managed to clean the blood from his eyes and felt his heart drop and body freeze.**

**He tried to dodge, but it wasn't enough as Wash thrust his own sword into him! It missed his chest but the lower side of his torso was impaled by the blade, cutting through skin and muscle and into the wall he lay on.**

"Jaune!" RWBY and NPR along with his family cried out.

"Damn!" the teachers of Beacon didn't want to see another student die, not like this.

"WAHOO!" Roman cheered as he shot to his feet. He cheered some more but they grew weaker and more reserved as he saw everyone glaring at him. He silently sat back down while Neo shook her head and thought to herself. 'Dumbass, my dumbass but still a dumbass'

**His body screamed to him in pain at this, blood spewing from his wound, was this what Weiss felt when Cinder tried this!?**

**"GAH!" He gasped in pain and his body violently jolted as the agent kicked the pommel of his sword even further into his torso. "FUCK!" he screamed as it felt like it was on fire, blood erupted from his wound and painted the steel of his sword.**

"Did he have to kick me while im down, or the sword in this case?" Jaune tried to joke but it fell short. He was then pulled into a hug by Pyrrha who was starting to hyperventilate.

**Wash breathed heavily as his armour sparked and he cradled his left shoulder. He himself was caught in the blast radius of his own grenade "Not bad kid, but you're not the only one who's good with sharp pointy things." He grunted as he turned.**

"**Nothing personal... I'll make this quick." Wash turned and walked away.**

**Wait for, no... Not away... towards something, it was his gun! The one Jaune knocked away earlier.**

"C'mon kid, pull yourself together!" Qrow urged the young hunter.

**Jaune cursed as he felt himself getting weaker. Was this it? Was this how he was going to die? Impaled by his own weapon then executed by a bullet to the head? Was this how it ends, after being shot at, scratched, bitten, nearly stabbed and beaten by others before this one? Was this truly it?**

**Was this... His destiny?**

_'__**WELL FUCK THAT**_**!' he screamed in his head as Jaune grasped his sword with renewed vigour! He couldn't die here. He refused to! He still had to avenge Pyrrha's death! And he was not going to let some Merc take him out!**

**He knew what he had to do, he concentrated whatever aura he had left to the wound, willing his body and soul to keep on fighting, he bit back any sounds of pain. He couldn't risk that guy knowing what he was up to. The Blade slowly exiting his body as he pulled with all his might.**

"Damn, kid doesn't know when to quit." Tyrian was on the edge of his seat as he giggles madly.

"He has been described as determined." Hazel pointed out.

"Stubborn more like, even in the face of certain death. It's foolish really." Watts argued.

**Blood coating the palms of his hands, his sore fingers bleeding as the blade cut the flesh as he pulled! He couldn't protect his hands; he needed every drop of aura for the fatal injury. Blood erupted even more fiercely as his vision would brighten up and suddenly blacken as if the sun was flickering on and off. Until with one mighty pull! He removed the blade!**

"Daaaamn!" Sun and Neptune said in awe.

"Yes!" Pyrrha cried out.

"What now kid?" Harriet quietly asked.

**It seemed like time had stopped, Crocea Mors seemed to be suspended in the air after he had removed it as the agent, with his back to the downed Arc, picked up his pistol. Jaune had only one shot at this, without his shield and next to no aura and he couldn't mess this up, it was life and death. Just one more bullet in him and Jaune was history**

**Pumping his aura into his body and channelling his Semblance, he launched forward as he felt the familiar handle be wrapped in his bloody and torn grip, he ran towards his foe as he let out a battle cry, even as his body was crying out, protesting to stop. But his heart racing and his determination was on auto-drive.**

**Wash had turned to see the charging knight and levelled his sidearm to Jaune, he was in his sights, only a couple feet away and closing quickly, his finger squeezed the trigger.  
Jaune knew where he was to attack and he knew where the agent's gun was pointed. And with one last cry, he thrusted his weapon forwad, just as Wash aimed and fired his gun.**

**A gunshot echoed, the sound of skin being sliced by steel was heard and blood stained the broken and dead earth beneath them.**

**All was silent.**

**The pair stood still before Wash dropped to his knees, he would have landed on his face but the sword that was imbedded in his throat kept him up.**

**Jaune held his sword for a few seconds until he let go of it and fell like a sack of potatoes on his back. A bullet mark grazed the side of his head, between the corner of his eye and the edge of his ear. Red colouring his usual blond locks from there.**

**He learnt his lesson from his fight with Cinder. Straight for the neck. He breathed in heavy breaths as he took a minute for himself.**

"**That…was too close…" he breathed as he looked at the corpse.**

"**If Yang were here…She'd say not to get a…**_**head**_**…of yourself…" he joked before grunting. "Argh! I knew it! Her Puns would hurt!" he groaned as he lay there and just enjoyed his victory…**

**Then his scroll went off, he looked at the caller ID and saw Ruby's face.**

**He let it ring a few times before shutting it off.**

"**I'll just let that one go to voice mail." He decided before he looked around and back to his scroll.**

"**I'll send a text though, tell them I might need some help." **

**K.O!**

**Boomstick: Damn that fight was great! Definitely more fun than what I'd imagine with these guys.**

**Wiz: Both Jaune and Wash put up a good fight, neither letting their opponent have the edge for too long and countering each other left and right.**

**Boomstick: Wash certainly had more fire power and knowledge in hand to hand combat, but Jaune's defences helped against that. Like I said, that shield is durable as hell!**

**Wiz: in terms of tactics and smarts, both were equal in that regard and used their environment to their advantages. And the way they fight made the fight equal.**

**Boomstick: Unlike his friends, Jaune doesn't spin and jump around every two seconds. He's more of a grounded fighter, if he were against someone like that though, he'd have a harder time fighting them. Wash doesn't flip around either so Jaune could fight him on steady grounds.**

**Wiz: Wash has a history of underestimating his opponents, Jaune was no exception and despite Wash having more experience and weapons at his disposal. Jaune had something he didn't.**

**Boomstick: His Aura makes the guy into a fricking tank! And Jaune used that. He could use it to protect himself and heal from attacks. Especially when he realized that agent Washington didn't have any Aura himself. Remember when Cardin punched Jaune in the face but nearly broke his own hand? Well that's because he wasn't using his aura.**

**Wiz: that's right Boomstick. There it showed that a bare fist is basically useless against someone with Aura.**

**Boomstick: That sword could have done Jaune in but Jaune's semblance saved his scrawny ass.**

**Wiz: Weiss Schnee had survived the same kind of stab wound and with the help of Jaune's semblance, the same can apply for Jaune in this situation.**

**Boomstick: I can already here the RWDE people of the RWBY fan base. "BuT jAuNe SuCks! He ShOuLd'Nt HaVe WoN! hE oNlY wInS wItH hElP!" Shut up! You RWDE "C" "W" "N" "T" s.**

**Wiz: Boomstick I think you spelt that wrong.**

**Boomstick: if "W" can replace the letter "U" for RWBY and RWDE, it can replace it for my word.**

**Wiz:… Right, and despite that. If we use that for Jaune, the same can be said for Washington. After all he wins a lot of his own battles with others like the Meta, Reds and Blues, Carolina and more. However, in Death Battle, we allow no outside help.**

**Boomstick: Looks like this agent is all… washed up.**

**Wiz: The winner is Jaune Arc.**

**0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0 **

**A/N: hope you enjoyed the fight.**

**For those who are a part of the RWDE community of RWBY, yeah I said that, deal with it. (If you don't like the show, then don't watch it.)**

**Once again, check out the two guys Gorillageek27 and Masseffect-TxS.**

**See you all later.**

**Hope you are safe and healthy everyone.**


End file.
